


Pua Piha

by moist_n_creamy



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Childhood Trauma, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Friends With Benefits, Hurt/Comfort, Redemption, Slow Burn, Switch!Guzma, Touch-Starved
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-29
Updated: 2019-05-19
Packaged: 2019-05-30 18:01:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 30,522
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15102047
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moist_n_creamy/pseuds/moist_n_creamy
Summary: The balance of power is upset when a master trainer returns to her childhood home in Po Town, hell-bent on making a few changes. When confronted by Team Skull's bombastic boss, both of their lives are turned completely upside-down.





	1. Homecoming

_\---_

_Fifteen Years Ago_

  


While heavy clouds showered Iki Town in heavy rains, the inside of the small cafe stayed warm and dry, busy waitresses flitting back and forth between customers. “Can I top you off?” The apron-clad woman smiled down at Hala, holding up a pot of fresh coffee.

 

“Sure, thanks.” He offered up his mug for her to fill.

 

“Terrible weather we’re having,” the waitress commented, careful not to step on the tail of the Meowth belonging to the man sitting opposite Hala, who glanced back and forth between his friend and the television mounted in the corner of the room. It had changed to an infomercial now, so the waitress went looking for the remote control to change the station. She flipped through the channels, from cartoons, to soap operas, to the news station on which she finally settled. The anchor started in on a story about a recent flood that had occurred due to the pouring rains plaguing the Alolan islands as of late.

 

“It’s such a shame what happened in Po Town,” Nanu muttered, shaking his head as the news program flashed images of homes destroyed, entire landscapes taken down by mudslides, injured citizens gathered in makeshift medical tents.

 

“I’m surprised you’re not busier right now,” Hala mused, taking a drink of his fresh coffee.

 

Nanu gave a wry chuckle. “I am too. I called Officer Jenny in Po Town to see if I could help in any way, but there really isn’t too much for the police to do. Most of the responsibility is falling to emergency medical services and disaster relief. All the cops can do is file missing person reports and try to stop looters.”

 

“I’ve heard that there are entire families displaced by that flood.”

 

“It’s terrible. Worst one Alola’s seen in decades.”

 

A look of sadness crossed the news anchor’s face. “Officials are currently placing the death toll at fifteen people.”

 

The waitress sighed, shaking her head. “How sad. I’ve got a neighbor who just lost his sister in one of those landslides. The whole house was destroyed while she and her family were inside.”

 

Hala looked up in astonishment. “The whole family?!”

 

“Somehow, their children all managed to make it out alive, but she and her husband…” She shook her head again.

 

“You gotta feel for those kids,” Nanu said. “Losing both mom and dad at the same time. I hope they’ve got other family that can take care of them.”

 

“Their eldest daughter has already taken to looking after the younger ones,” the waitress continued. “Poor kid. She’s only ten years old!”

 

“Ten’s old enough to start training Pokemon, in a lot of places.”

 

“Not old enough to be a parent, though.”

 

“Not at all. My neighbor would have taken them in, but he travels so much for work. The children will be going to stay with their father’s parents in Kalos,” she explained.

 

“That’s a big change,” Hala commented. “It’s too bad they can’t stay in their home region.”

 

Nearby, a child of seven or eight sat quietly, waiting as his father berated the poor cashier for not having more pineapple fritters on hand. He could hear those other two men talking to the waitress about some other kids who had lost their parents; he felt sad for them. He himself still had both his mom and dad, even if they were separated. His father could be a loud, angry sort of person, but he supposed it was better than not having a dad at all. The boy looked down at the angry-looking bruise on his arm, tugging his sleeve down to cover it so that no one would see. Most people would see the marks and assume that he was a troublemaker, getting into fights with other children, but that wasn’t the case. After all, most kids couldn’t hit _that_ hard.

 

“Dad, it’s not _her_ fault they don’t have enough fritters.” He knew that saying something like this wouldn’t go over so well for him, but better him than the cashier.

 

“Watch your mouth, boy, or you’ll get a whuppin’.” Truthfully, he’d get one whether he watched his mouth or not. The deciding factor here was the amount of whiskey his father had poured into his morning cup of coffee.

 

His father dumped a wad of wrinkled bills onto the counter to pay for what pastries the cafe had left, snatching the bag from the cashier, who looked as though she would need to take her break a little earlier than normal. “It’s time to go, boy.” He grabbed his son roughly by the arm, making him wince at the discomfort, dragging him away. The boy knew that he’d have angry little bruises later from where his father’s fingers pressed roughly into his flesh, and he tried to remind himself of the children that Mr. Hala and Mr. Nanu had been talking about, tried to remind himself that at least he still _had_ his parents, even if they were far from perfect. Hopefully the weekend would pass quickly, and he could return to the safety of his mother’s home.

 

Watching how the man handled his child, Hala shook his head, sighing in disapproval. “It isn’t right, the way he treats that boy.” He could see Nanu gripping his ceramic mug tightly, knuckles turning white.

 

“I should say something,” he muttered, glaring daggers at the unfit parent. “I have a responsibility to keep people safe.”

 

“It’ll just make things worse for that boy,” Hala warned. “He takes all of his anger out on that child. I know you can see that.”

 

“Yeah, I know, but I still don’t like it.”

 

“Of course not. No one does. We just have to hope that that boy learns by observation, and grows up to be better than his father.”

  


_Present Day_

  


The usual grey drizzle greeted Koa as she drove into Po Town city limits. She hadn’t been here in over a decade, though technically, it was her home. She had been born here, raised here for almost her entire childhood, even if certain circumstances had torn her away from it at a younger age than anticipated. Now, after years of traveling, training, studying, she was returning for good. This dreary, sleepy little town would be her home once again. A number of friends and family members had tried to warn her against coming back here, telling her that the area had, to put things bluntly, gone to shit. After that flood all those years ago, the town had struggled to recover. Many people chose to move away rather than put the work into rebuilding, and the place fell into decline. Crime rates had gone up, and Koa’s family worried that, as a “newcomer.” she might be targeted by the gang that based itself out of Po Town. Koa didn’t feel too worried about it, however. If they wanted to battle, her team could take on that of a teenage delinquent any day. Even if this gang had some big, bad boss behind it, it wouldn’t be an issue for a master trainer like Koa.

 

Koa turned away, keeping her eyes focused on the road ahead of her as she passed that old, familiar turn-off. The last time she had seen it, it road had been covered in loose earth, the same destructive force that had destroyed her childhood home, forcing her to leave the only home she had ever known and into an almost-nomadic existence. For so many years she hadn’t been able to stay in one place for too long, and she believed that maybe she just wanted to go _home_ , no matter how many painful memories lingered here. Koa forced herself to look, seeing how nature had taken over in the past fifteen years. The dirt drive-up was almost completely hidden now. No one would even know what had happened here if it weren’t for the scrap of yellow caution tape that remained stubbornly tied to a nearby tree limb. The sight of it made Koa’s chest feel tight, and she quickly returned her attention to the road.

 

The large house that Koa had purchased on the cheap wasn’t much to look at, but it met her needs, and had its own private boardwalk crossing the dunes to the beach. Though funds had been tight at times in the past, she was glad to have saved her portion of the money she’d gotten from her parents, allowing her to purchase both this house, and the small home she’d had placed next to it, fabricated from an old shipping container. Accustomed to doing things herself, Koa had spent time converting the empty metal box into a comfortable living space as she finished up her dissertation on Kanto’s legendary birds. She had had the container shipped and installed here, ready for her to move in when she arrived. While she lived in the smaller secondary home, the large house would be used for something else entirely.

 

While Po Town _did_ have a Pokemon Center, it too had fallen under Team Skull’s control, leaving visiting trainers with few resources. Koa planned to open her own center of sorts; a place where trainers and their pokemon could rest and heal, but also train and participate in practice battles. She also hoped to provide education to young trainers- on nutrition, injury treatment, training methods… What Po Town really needed was a trainer skilled and hard-headed enough to stand up to Team Skull. They would probably come to challenge her as soon as they learned of her presence, but Koa wasn’t one to roll over and give up. Parking her car, she stood in the driveway facing the run-down house in front of her. To the right was her little container house, and to the left, all of the plants she had brought with her to transplant into a garden, growing fresh fruits and vegetables for the trainers and pokemon who visited the Po Town Pokemon Resource Center.

 

Lucario appeared at Koa’s side, looking at the house and making a sound of thoughtfulness. “You’re right,” she replied. “It does need a lot of work.” She didn’t want to think about what the building looked like on the inside, though she had seen the photos at the time of purchase. Everything would be covered in a fine layer of dust, the carpet musty and stained, metal fixtures starting to rust. Wild pokemon might very well have made themselves at home, and Koa would feel bad having to oust them. Then again, there were plenty of empty houses in this town; the wilds would simply have to go somewhere else. _Y’all can’t be livin’ in this house actin’ like you pay rent!_ Hesitantly, she pulled the key from her pocket, unlocking the front door. It wouldn’t budge at first, the paint on the door having gotten stuck to the paint of the doorframe. Finally Koa managed to force it open, ripping the color right off. _Another thing to fix._ As expected, the interior demanded extensive renovation, but it wasn’t quite as bad as she had anticipated. In fact, a good cleaning would do a world of good. The floor turned out to be tiled, rather than carpeted, much to Koa’s relief, and all of the walls seemed to be intact, simply needing a fresh coat of paint. She could clean the massive living space to use for a training area, and renovate the upstairs bedrooms into guest living quarters. The master bedroom could be a room for the occasional adult guest, and the den, a first aid clinic and healing center. Koa’s brain buzzed with possibilities.

 

Yipping excitedly, Herdier raced ahead into the house to explore, fuzzy tail at attention and waving like a flag. Though they were companions to Koa, rather than battle partners, Lucario and Herdier seemed the most excited about this transition. Of course, maybe they were just happy to be home too. Fifteen years was a long time to be away, after all. She could hear Herdier barking in another room, and she hurried that way to investigate. The furry little pokemon had a frightened Spinarak backed into one corner of the kitchen, and Koa quickly opened a sliding glass door to let it scuttle outside to freedom. From this door, she could see out over the dunes, the turquoise ocean in view. Though the low clouds kept it from sparkling in sunlight, it still was a welcome sight, and she gathered Herdier up in her arms so that it could see as well. Herdier’s tail started to wag again, pink tongue lolling out happily. “Are you glad to be back too?”

 

\---

 

The decline in business had forced most of Po Town’s restaurants to close, but at least a couple of bars remained, considering there wasn’t much else to do in this god-forsaken place. Guzma held up two fingers. “Yo, bartender.”

 

“Another of the same?” The bartender snapped the cap off another beer, sliding it down the smooth surface of the bar. “You know, first time I saw you, I had you pegged for a whiskey-kind-of-guy.”

 

“Nah,” Guzma shook his head. “I’ve never liked whiskey much.” He raised the glass bottle to his lips, drinking slowly, killing time rather than actively trying to get drunk. Sometimes if felt like that was all he ever did anymore. Team Skull controlled Po Town now, and his grunts were expanding to the other islands with great efficiency. There wasn’t always a lot for the boss to do these days.

 

He dug a half-empty pack of cigarettes out of the pocket of his hoodie, sticking one in his mouth and lighting it. Guzma felt restless as of late, itching for something to do. Nowadays all he seemed to do was mull around Shady House, smoking and watching the rain, drinking Tapu Cocoa until it was late enough for alcohol. A while back, Plumeria had come around to the idea of a friends-with-benefits sort of deal, but even that had gotten dull after some time. When there was nothing else to do, even sex became sort of a “might was well” kind of thing. Guzma had tried getting the grunts to battle him, but they always just let him win, because he was the boss. There wasn’t any fun in that, and it wouldn’t make his pokemon any stronger. He had tossed around the idea of traveling some, checking in on the grunts on other islands, but ultimately he’d decided not to do that. Lusamine only cut a check for so much money each month, and Guzma didn’t want to risk taking food out of his grunts’ mouths just to cure his own boredom.

 

“A new resource center for pokemon trainers?” another bar patron snorted. “How long do you think _that_ will last?” Guzma turned his head to listen in on the conversation. Team Skull basically controlled the town, but some naive enterprise had managed to sneak in under his nose in hopes of creating a thriving business here.

 

“I dunno,” the patron’s companion replied. “I heard it was gonna be run by some master trainer or something. She might just give Team Skull a run for their money.”

 

“It’s foolhardy, is what it is. Team Skull _runs_ this town now.” Guzma couldn’t help smiling to himself hearing this. _Das right...all thanks to the boss._

 

“Don’t go getting a big head now,” Plumeria warned, whacking him on the back of the head. “Don’t forget- we couldn’t have accomplished as much as we did without Aether bankrolling us, so be careful about getting too arrogant.”

 

“Jeez, Plum. I know…”

 

She shrugged. “Anyway, since you’ve been listening to that conversation, what do you make of all this resource center business?”

 

Guzma took another drag from his cigarette. “I ain’t all that worried about it. They’ll figure out soon enough how things work around here, and they’ll be walking on eggshells. Heh. Maybe we could even get them to pay a ‘protection’ fee, make a little extra cash.”

 

Plumeria was skeptical. “Like I said before, you shouldn’t be so arrogant. If this person truly _is_ a master pokemon trainer, we need to be careful, work strategically. Strike too soon, and they’ll still be on their toes. No doubt they know about us, and they’ll be _expecting_ us to challenge them. Strike too late, and they will already have gotten comfortable.”

 

“Well, what do you suggest, then?”

 

“Give it a couple of weeks, then challenge them. If you can swing it, make a bet. If you win, they have to leave town under threat of constant harassment from Team Skull. If they win, they can stay.” Plumeria grinned menacingly. “Though, who’s to say that even if they win, the grunts won’t still give them a rough go of it?”

 

Challenging this newcomer _did_ sound more entertaining than moping around all day until it was time to drink. “Heh, you’re pretty smart, Plum.” Guzma made a mental note to start getting his team in shape so that they could kick ass when the time came. Deep down, he didn’t know if he and his pokemon were strong enough to defeat a pokemon _master_ , but he didn’t necessarily need to win on skill alone. If he could intimidate this person, they might make simple mistakes here and there that would ultimately cost them the battle. At the same time, giving them a couple of weeks of peace at first could result in a puffed-up ego that caused them to underestimate what Team Skull could do. Either way, confidence, or lack thereof, could play a large role in the outcome of a fight. A master trainer likely had it in spades, but would it stand up against Team Skull’s big, bad Boss?


	2. Big Bad Guzma

\---

After nearly two weeks of hard work cleaning and remodeling, Koa finally managed to get the Po Town Pokemon Resource Center up and running, much to the delight of young trainers passing through on their way to challenge the next trial captain. Alola had its own way of doing things, for better or for worse. It made the region unique, but it also seemed to lag behind other places, united in their participation in the Pokemon League. Koa had a cousin that could go on and on about how the region’s professors and master trainers should work together to import such an institution, and she was inclined to agree with him. If such a development were to ever take place, perhaps this center could also function as a gym. Though, that would only be realistic if the socio-economic situation in Po Town were to improve. Was that really something she could expect to happen? Kids flocked to her because it was the only place in town they could go to eat, to treat their pokemon’s injuries or train them, to get a good night’s sleep in a safe location. Almost all of them had some story of a bad run-in with the Team Skull crowd, having their pokemon stolen or at least badly beaten in a battle over which they had no choice.

 

Despite this, Koa hadn’t had any problems of her own with the group. She’d seen those kids around town, certainly, but they always left her alone. Somehow, this seemed weirder, almost as if they had been told to stay away from her, which would mean that they knew who she was, that the more senior members of the gang knew who she was. If so, Team Skull likely knew her skill level, and had told their grunts to stay out of her way to avoid being beaten in a fight. Koa knew that they wouldn’t just let her go on about her business forever. She was too much of a threat to the stronghold they had on this town, and her presence would only embolden other strong trainers to return to the area. No, they would come to challenge her in time, to show their strength and try to intimidate her. Unfortunately for Team Skull, Koa was not the kind of person to be easily intimidated. She was a strong, smart trainer, and her team was skilled and powerful. If anything, she might put herself at a slight disadvantage by focusing on flying types, but her pokemon were strong enough to overcome any difficulties they might have due to their class.

 

One one particular thursday, just as grey and drizzle-filled as most other days, Koa sat at the desk in her office, filling out paperwork for the funding her resource center had been awarded. Herdier snoozed at her feet, fuzzy ear twitching every once in a while. Several young trainers practiced battling down on the beach, or worked with their pokemon in the training area. In a few hours, Koa would make her way to the kitchen to prepare something for them to eat. She felt glad to have someone to cook for; if she’d been by herself, she would have stuck to chips and cup noodles, being the workaholic that she was. She didn’t ever admit it to herself, or even really realize it, but she was much better at taking care of others than taking care of herself. Things had been that way for quite some time. Maybe things would start to change now. This place felt more like home than almost any other place she had lived. Of course, it  _ was  _ home, and she had chosen to come back here. The quiet sleepiness of the town, its lazy, sprinkling rain...they comforted Koa in a way that she rarely had been before.

 

\---

 

Guzma yanked up the hood of his jacket, grumbling about having to go out in the rain. Of course, it rained here almost every day, but that didn’t make it any less annoying. It had been a couple of weeks since this mystery trainer had rolled up into  _ his  _ town, and he had waited long enough. Today Guzma would challenge this newcomer just as he and Plumeria had agreed, and, if things went according to plan, send them packing. Of course, what could go wrong, when Big G was the biggest, baddest trainer in all of Alola? It wasn’t arrogance, just confidence. This newbie wouldn’t even know what hit ‘em. Once again, Team Skull would come out on top and teach their challengers  _ exactly  _ who ran this town. This trainer would have two choices if they wanted to stay: pay up, or fight. If they battled and lost, they would have to leave Po Town, or else the Team would give them hell. 

 

Having had his grunts perform a little recon for him, Guzma knew exactly where to go. It was a bit of a walk from Shady House, but that was probably for the best. Team Skull wouldn’t want all of this nonsense setting up shop right next door, after all. The place was hidden by the tall shrubs that lined the winding road leading up to it, the road itself dusty with sand that had blown over from the dunes. Rounding a corner, the two-story house came into view. It was an old place, a little run-down-looking on the outside, but glowing from within with warmth. A second, smaller house rested beside it, constructed from an old shipping container.  _ That must be where this motherfucker lives.  _ A new, hand-lettered sign posted next to the main building’s front door confirmed the place’s identity: “Po Town Pokemon Resource Center.” What had been the point of taking control of the town’s Pokemon Center if something like this would come around eventually. This person probably provided all their services for free, taking away one of Team Skull’s revenue streams. That just wouldn’t do.

 

A young trainer came through the front door then, freezing as soon as he saw Guzma, flanked by several Skull grunts. Wordlessly, he disappeared back into the house, closing the door behind him. Before anyone could lock the intruders out, Guzma kicked the door open, almost expecting it to be busted all the way down. However, was strong, having recently been replaced, so it simply crashed open, leaving a dent in the wall where the doorknob struck it. All the kids inside looked up in terror, clutching their precious pokemon close and backing away. “I’m lookin’ for the trainer that runs this place!” Guzma bellowed, voice echoing. “Where they at?!”

 

“Y-You’re looking for M-Miss Koa?” The trainer who spoke couldn’t even make eye contact, staring at his shoes the whole time.

 

“Yeah. This here is Team Skull territory, and I think she might need a little reminder who runs this town!”

 

“You-You’re not gonna  _ hurt  _ her, are you?” Having gathered some small amount of courage now, the youngster looked up, though he still held his Popplio close.

 

Guzma’s mouth turned upward into a malicious grin. “Well, that depends on her, now doesn’t it?”

 

\---

 

Koa fed what felt like the millionth form into the scanner. Paperwork like this always bored her, but it was a necessary evil that came along with professional organizations willing to fund little endeavors like her own. As the scanner fired off another email, she could hear a tiny knock on the office door; one of the trainers here currently probably needed assistance with something. Koa opened the door wide, growing worried as the eyed the pallor present on the child’s face. “Is everything okay?”

 

He mumbled a few words in response, but Koa couldn’t make out what he had said.

 

“Say that again? A little bit louder?”

 

“Team Skull is here.” The sentence came out as a harsh whisper, exposing the trainer’s fear. Koa stood up straight; she had known that this moment would come eventually, and she was not afraid. If anything, she felt a bit annoyed that they had made her guests feel frightened. 

 

“I’ll take care of it,” she muttered gruffly, reaching for a couple of Poke Balls that rested on her desk and striding out of the office, shoulders squared, face set firmly into an fierce expression. 

 

Koa strode into the main room, eyeing the intruders and assuming a defensive stance, feet apart and arms crossed. “Somehow I know you’d be coming ‘round eventually.”

 

Guzma looked at her, smirking, giving her a once-over to size her up. The young woman stood just a little over five feet tall, light brown skin and dark brown hair punctuated by piercing blue eyes the color of the ocean. “You didn’t really think we’d just let you roll up into  _ our  _ town and do whatever you liked, did you?”

 

“No, not really. So, who are you and what do you want?” She was a very no-nonsense type of person, clearly viewing the situation at hand as a minor annoyance she wanted to get out of the way. Guzma didn’t much like that sort of attitude.

 

“You don’t already know about Big Bad Guzma? You should be thrilled to have an audience with the  _ Boss _ .”

 

Koa blinked, unimpressed. “So do you wanna battle, or what?”

 

“See, I was gettin’ to that.” This woman didn’t seem all that fazed by this new development, which got under Guzma’s skin just a bit. She was  _ supposed  _ to be intimidated by him, damn it! “I’ve got a little challenge for ya.” Koa raised an eyebrow, but said nothing in response. “You’ve got two choices here.”

 

“Oh?”

 

“We can battle, if that’s what ya want, but if you’re feeling a little bit  _ nervous _ , you could, uh, pay your rent.”

 

“I own this property. I have no rent to pay,” Koa sneered. She knew what the creep meant, but she wasn’t backing down so easily.

 

“I was talking about the rent you pay for  _ our permission  _ to stay in this town.”

 

“Oh,  _ that  _ kind of rent.” She removed a small, red-and-white ball from her pocket, letting it expand in size in the palm of her hand. “Hmm...I think I’ll have to politely decline.” She grinned, eyes blazing. “Besides, I’ve been wanting a battle for a while now.”

 

“Hey,” Guzma shrugged. “It’s your funeral.”

 

“So I guess if I lose, you want me to leave town, right? What happens if  _ I  _ win?” Koa asked after she’d had everyone move down to the beach, not wanting the house to be destroyed.

 

“You get to keep running your wimpy little training center… At least until the next time I wanna challenge ya.”

 

“Fair enough,” Koa yawned. “But since you’re in my house now, I’ll set the terms of the battle. This’ll be a one-on-one fight. Don’t you try an’ hit me with that ‘best two out of three’ mess. We can flip a coin to see who sends out their pokemon first.” Having one’s opponent be the first to send out their fighter was advantageous, as it gave the second trainer the opportunity to send out a pokemon whose type was strong against its rival.

 

This was a fair offer, but today, Guzma was feeling confident. “Nah, I’m feeling generous. I’ll send mine out first.” He chucked a Poke Ball of his own out into the ring, a strong-looking Golisopod emerging from it.

 

_ Bug/water, huh?  _ Koa smirked, winding up to fast-pitch her own fighter. The ball burst open, Talonflame flying free and streaking circles around the field of battle.

 

Guzma smirked, watching the bird make another lap overhead. Fire types and flying types could easily beat a bug, but Golisopod also had water abilities, making it strong against the fiery side of Talonflame’s nature. Maybe the scales were tipped slightly in Koa’s favor, but he knew that his pokemon was strong enough to overcome this. “We gonna start this thing or what?”

 

“Impatient, aren’t you?” Koa shook her head. “Well, if you insist… Talonflame, use fire blast!” The speedy raptor opened its beak, releasing a surge of blazing flame toward Golisopod. The massive bug braced itself against the blast, wincing in discomfort, but standing strong. When the fire subsided, it appeared relatively unhurt, though its armored exoskeleton bore dark scorch marks. 

 

“Golisopod, you good?” Guzma called out. The pokemon gave an affirmative nod, never taking its eyes off its opponent. “Aight then, attack using first impression. But be careful! That bird’s pretty damn fast!”

 

Golisopod waited for its best chance to strike, knowing that it didn’t have a great chance of landing the hit if Talonflame soared too high. In the meantime, it weaved back and forth, dodging the continued spurts of flame spat toward it. Finally realizing that the isopod would only continue this indefinitely, Talonflame flew downward, hoping to get a better shot. As it decreased its altitude, Golisopod took the chance and hurtled forward, crashing into the feathered pokemon, knocking it out of the air. It hit the ground, tumbling back a few meters. To Guzma’s shock, its trainer’s face never changed, remaining confident in the resilience of her fighter. “Are you alright, Talonflame?” she asked, never breaking eye contact with her rival. The raptor gave a sharp cry, springing to its feet and using its powerful wings to dust itself off before ascending high into the sky once more, ready for round 2. The corner of her mouth curled upward. “That’s what I thought.” Another piercing shriek could be heard from above. “You’re right. We’ve played around for long enough. It’s time to get down to business.”

 

Talonflame looked back at its trainer, and, so as not to give away their next move, Koa gave a swift hand motion, holding two fingers straight up and then quickly motioning straight down. She had worked out a system of hand signals with all of her fighter pokemon; Talonflame knew that this sign meant “aerial ace.” It dove downward toward its opponent, flapping its wings once in Golisopod’s face. After that, it disappeared, moving so swiftly that it was practically invisible, a slight red streak occasionally visible to the naked eye. Finally Talonflame decided it had waited long enough, and slammed into its rival, red-hot body burning as it made its impact. The attack was powerful, but Golisopod was strong, quick to stand again after the sheer force of the hit had knocked it down. “Shit!” Guzma could see that his pokemon was burned, but not too severely. If his fighter could land another good hit, they  _ might _ have a chance at victory. 

 

“Hurry and use razor shell while it’s still down low!” The massive isopod snatched a shell-like portion of its armor and hurled it forward, knocking Talonflame right out of the air. The bird landed in the sand, feathers ruffled and looking a little worse for wear. Still, it wasn’t out of the fight just yet. 

 

Koa grit her teeth, hitting a closed fist against her open palm.  _ Giga impact.  _ Talonflame shook off the attack, gathering all of its strength and focusing it to charge up its next move. A purplish aura could be seen around it, yellowish stripes circling the ball of energy. Guzma swallowed hard as he observed how the other trainer’s demeanor had changed. Initially, she hadn’t taken any of this too seriously, viewing Team Skull’s intrusion more as a minor annoyance than anything else. Now, she’d gotten serious, realizing that he  _ could  _ be a worthy competitor after all. Guzma tried to call out to Golisopod to dodge, but he had waited too long, as Talonflame crashed into it, knocking the other pokemon dizzy. The bug was stunned now, and it wouldn’t be able to do anything as its opponent charged up one final attack. “Talonflame, use hyper beam.”  _ No more half-measures.  _

 

It would take a minute for the attack to charge up, but with Golisopod shaken, it wouldn’t be a problem. Talonflame opened its beak, a ball of orange energy appearing within it. “Come on, snap out of it!” Guzma pleaded, knowing deep down that it was too late. He could only watch as the other fighter released the tremendous beam of power, destroying what strength his partner had left. When the dust settled, Golisopod lay unconscious in the sand, Talonflame swooping down to land on Koa’s shoulder.

 

“Great job!” she cooed, stroking the bird’s feathered head. It gave a pleased cry, stretching its wings excitedly.

 

Guzma stared at his incapacitated pokemon, stunned to have lost this fight. It should have been no problem to smash this newcomer, but she’d put up one hell of a fight.  _ Koa  _ clearly didn’t understand how things worked around these parts. No, she just didn’t  _ care _ . Eyes narrowing, he looked up at the happy trainer, still congratulating her brave fighter. “Who do you think you are?” he growled, clenching his teeth.

 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Koa asked, raising an eyebrow.

 

“Do you  _ know _ who I am?!”

 

“Team Skull’s boss, right? What’s your point?” Her bored expression infuriated Guzma, who refused to accept the outcome of this battle.

 

“You think you can just come up in here and-”

 

“And beat you? What, was I supposed to  _ let  _ you win? Fat chance,” Koa snorted as she called Talonflame back into its ball, pocketing the item before folding her arms across her chest.

 

“No, but-”

 

“We fought a fair battle, and I won. If you want to be a sore loser, that’s your problem.”

 

Guzma had had quite enough, stomping across the sand toward her. “I’ll smash you one way or the other!” He balled up a fist, winding up and swinging at her. Koa never flinched as an older-looking Lucario appeared at her side, catching the punch in one of its sturdy paws, grey-flecked muzzle curling up in a snarl.

 

She looked up, fear never crossing her face. “I think it would be best if you left now.”

 

The boss scoffed, turning back around quickly and walking away, grunts hurrying after him. He hated to leave now; it would send the message that he had lost, and the last thing he needed was for this... _ woman  _ to go getting a big head over beating him. It wouldn’t be good for Team Skull’s reputation, or his own. The gang had a good thing going on here in Po Town, and Guzma worried that such an upset might affect the balance of power that they’d hustled so damn hard to create. He vowed that this wouldn’t be the last battle he would have with Koa, and next time, he’d give her the beat down she so richly deserved.  

 

Koa sighed, shaking her head. Frankly, she felt glad that those troublemakers were finally leaving. She had known that she’d have to go toe-to-toe with them eventually, but she’d underestimated just how much of a  _ pain  _ it would be. Of course Team Skull would be annoying, maybe a little obnoxious, but it surprised her just how arrogant, how  _ angry  _ their boss could be. He wasn’t the kind of person she wanted around her trainers; it would be frightening for them. Unfortunately, Koa could tell that he wasn’t the kind of person to give up easily. She knew he’d be back for another showdown soon enough. Only time would tell how soon, but it was certain: she hadn’t seen the last of Big Bad Guzma.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you enjoy my writing, you can also follow my tumblr where I scream into the void: dumpster-owl.tumblr.com
> 
> Also, some Koa artwork I did back in December in case you were curious what she's supposed to look like:  
> https://dumpster-owl.tumblr.com/post/169136356376/master-trainer-koa-wants-to-battle-finally  
> Her skin is actually supposed to be a little darker than it looks in the image because I didn't do a good job taking into consideration what certain hues look like when next to other colors. One of these days I'll finish her ref sheet that has a much more accurate representation.


	3. Thursday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I may or may not have taken some liberties with Oricorio's abilities in this chapter, but after doing some research, I've found no evidence that what I wrote can't work, so there.

Even as four or five days had passed since that first unfortunate battle against Koa the intruder, it remained fresh and present in Guzma’s mind. Of course, the event had been shocking to him, ending in an outcome that he’d never anticipated. When gossip had initially gone around that his opponent was some kind of  _ master-status  _ trainer, he hadn’t quite believed it, seeing how the chit-chat in this town could sometimes get a little out-of-hand. To Guzma’s dismay, the word on the streets had been true. Golisopod was still sulking even after having its injuries treated, irritated that it’s trainer had been so brash, so careless. Even an offering of a special treat, malasadas, did little to make the isopod warm back up. Its pride was hurt too, like Guzma’s, and it just needed a little bit of time to feel better. Plumeria too had seemed mildly annoyed by the loss at first, but ended up shrugging it off; everyone lost sometimes, she said, you just had to get stronger and do better the next time around.

 

None of the grunts dared to say a single word about it. They could see how much the loss frustrated their boss, and  _ no one  _ wanted to earn a beat-down by saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. Instead, they let it be, simply offering to be helpful in whatever way they could. Really though, there wasn’t anything they could do. Damage to one’s pride had to heal over time, and Guzma spent much of that time keeping to himself, locking himself away in the privacy of his own space so he could brood over his irritation in silence. Ever since the fight, he had been running over the details in his mind over and over, trying to figure out where he had gone wrong, what he could have done differently in order to come out on top, and, of course, what he needed to do next in order to ensure that Team Skull maintained its stranglehold over Po Town. He wouldn’t let this one slip-up be the beginning of the end; they had a good thing going here, and Guzma wasn’t about to be the reason everything went off the rails.

 

Other than the fact that Guzma couldn’t quite figure out one specific thing he had done wrong, what frustrated him the most was that he  _ couldn’t stop thinking about that battle _ . He didn’t like it, but he had to admit to himself that maybe Koa really just was a strong trainer. At the time, Guzma had been too angry to realize it, but looking back, he could recall that she just had some kind of quality about her, something that was just  _ electric _ . Her passion for her work burned bright and hot inside her, and it came out through everything that she did. It only made him want to beat her more; a quality like that,  _ charisma  _ like that, was dangerous to the group in power. When Guzma closed his eyes at night, he could see her fiery gaze, the cold flames smoldering behind her eyes, and that terrible, determined smirk. It pissed him off to no end.  _ I’ll beat you down if it ends up being the death of me.  _

 

Obviously, he would have to challenge her again; Guzma couldn’t just  _ let this go _ . Such a slight couldn’t go unpunished. Plumeria had been quick to remind him that he needed to go back and fight her again in the future, and he’d almost felt tempted to suggest that Plum go and challenge Koa herself, if she was so worried about it. However, he knew that she was right, even if her words were redundant, echoing his own thoughts. At the very least, this would cure his boredom, having a goal to train and fight for. It wasn’t necessarily a  _ fun  _ goal, since there was so much on the line, but it was  _ something  _ to do. In his bed, Guzma flipped over onto his back, staring up at the ceiling. If he couldn’t sleep, then he could put this time to good use, working on coming up with a strategy to beat Koa once and for all.

 

Although it wasn’t just one specific thing that had ensured her victory before, Guzma could identify several areas where he hadn’t been careful enough, where he’d allowed his opponent to claim the upper hand. He knew that he should have tried to find out more beforehand regarding what kinds of pokemon Koa liked to use in battle. If he had done that, he might have known about her overall advantage, seeing as bug types were easily beaten by flying types. Furthermore, it might have been helpful to not be so quick to send out his fighter first. If they had flipped a coin, and she had been the first to show her hand, Guzma would have been able to choose his best option for facing off with Talonflame. Unfortunately, he didn’t yet know what other pokemon Koa had up her sleeve, so he couldn’t train his own for those specific situations, but he could, at the very least, build up their resistance to aerial attacks.

 

He had spent a good amount of time trying to figure out which of his pokemon would be best to use in their next match-up. It would all come down to who had to send out their fighter first, as type advantages could often be a deciding factor in these kinds of face-offs. Guzma had a flying-type pokemon himself, Masquerain; it wouldn’t be a bad choice. If Koa chose to use Talonflame again, or another fire/flying dual threat, Scizor might be a better choice. Its steely nature made it strong against the flames which had injured Golisopod badly in their previous challenge. However, it was more likely that Koa would use a different fighter this time around. She seemed like the kind to rotate her team, allowing all of them to gain experience. She also seemed, to a certain extent, like the kind of trainer who liked to flex on her competitor just a little bit, showing off the strength of her battle partners. Guzma didn’t mind that. He could be the same way sometimes. In the end, it would be to his advantage anyway if she were to reveal more information about what kind of heavy hitters she was packing.

 

\---

 

“Please stop wiggling, Riolu! Miss Koa is trying to help you!” the young trainer scolded, frustrated with the tiny pokemon. Riolu whined in response, but complied, sitting still and allowing Koa to apply the Burn Heal serum to its leg. The injury disappeared quickly, along with the associated pain, and the pokemon yelped in delight, jumping up happily. Its trainer beamed. “Thank you!” 

 

“No problem, you two be careful out there.” Ever since her match-up with Team Skull the previous week, things had been...quiet. The encounter hadn’t seemed to affect the popularity of her resource center, as the traveling children felt even more confident now in her ability to keep them safe. It seemed strange all the same. Even though their boss had been so angry with the outcome of the match, they had all left her well enough alone in the days that followed. She still saw the young members of the gang around town, certainly, but they stayed out of her way. Of course, they probably realized that if their  _ boss  _ couldn’t beat her, then they didn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell.

 

“M-Miss Koa?” The tiny voice that piped up behind her carried the same fear that she’d seen last week, when Team Skull had arrived without warning to challenge her. It couldn’t be that they had  _ come back _ , could it?

 

“What is it? Is everything okay? Did someone get hurt?” Koa hoped that wasn’t the case. Given the choice between a Team Skull invasion and the serious injury of a child, she would take the former anyday.

 

The young trainer pointed toward the front door. “H-He’s back.”

 

Koa’s mouth set itself firmly into a scowl. Even if she could easily beat Guzma, she didn’t like him coming in here and frightening her kids. She patted her pocket to make sure she had at least a couple of strong fighters with her, then proceeded toward the main room where she was sure  _ that man  _ would be waiting. Seeing him there, she sighed, folding her arms across her chest.

 

“What do you want?”

 

Guzma looked a bit like a Deerling in the headlights, this time arriving without so much fanfare. “I, uh, I wanted to challenge you again.” His attitude and demeanor seemed far-removed from the bombastic asshat he’d presented himself as before. The loss had likely humbled him in some respect, along with the realization that, in this house, he couldn’t get away with his typical behavior.

 

Though she wanted to be irritated that he had come here again, Koa had to appreciate Guzma’s efforts to tone-down his presentation, speaking at an appropriate volume and politely stating what he wanted instead of simply demanding it. She didn’t know how this would change if she were to refuse his request, but she wasn’t so inclined to find out, either. Of course, it wasn’t like she had ever intended to decline should the Skull boss come around again. He didn’t intimidate her, and battling strong opponents (which, she hated to admit, Guzma was) made her a stronger trainer. After thinking for a minute, Koa exhaled through her nose. “Fine. Let’s go down to the beach.”

 

“Since you sent your pokemon out first last time, I’ll go first this time.” It seemed like she was just being fair, but Koa was confident that she could win even without this informational advantage.

 

“Are you that confident that you’re going to win?” Guzma smirked.

 

Well he had her there. She shrugged. “I guess we’ll have to see.” She wound up, pitching the red-and-white ball on the the field. “Let’s go, Oricorio!” The small, peppy bird burst forth, waving a pair of puffy yellow pom-poms that matched the fluffy plumage of its electric-type form.

 

Guzma let go of the breath he’d been holding, relieved that he wouldn’t have to worry about fire this time around. “Aight, then I choose Masquerain!” The large, but delicate-looking bug soared over the court. With a flier of his own, Koa wouldn’t be able to use the bug-versus-flying advantage to her benefit.

 

“Masquerain, huh?” She had a glint in her eye that struck Guzma as suspicious, and he shifted uncomfortably. Koa smirked deviously, striding over to a set of bushes which boasted large, colorful blooms, admiring them.

 

“What are ya doin’?” Guzma asked, getting impatient. “Hurry up and start the battle!”

 

“Calm down, I’m coming.” Koa plucked a brilliant red flower from the bush, returning to the field and holding it out to offer to Oricorio. The little bird cocked its head before hopping over and dipping its beak into the blossom. Once it had consumed all the nectar the plant had to give, the electric yellow color of its feathers began to shift dramatically, changing to a smooth, red morph. It turned back toward its rival, striking a dramatic pose which Koa mimicked, looking smug. 

 

“Living on Ula’ula Island, I’m sure you’re familiar with Oricorio’s Baile Form?” With a snap of her fingers, Oricorio flapped its wings once, setting them ablaze.

 

Guzma clenched his fists, jaw set firm. What Koa had done wasn’t cheating, but rather simply taking full advantage of her pokemon’s nature. Still it frustrated him, even if there was nothing he could do about it. He wanted to yell and complain, but instead, he forced an arrogant smile. “You ready to get this beat down?”

 

\---

 

Masquerain smacked into the ground, spraying sand about, looking dazed, its wings rumpled. Oricorio landed gently a few meters away, maintaining a defensive pose as it waited to see if its opponent would rouse itself to continue their match. “Masquerain, can ya get up?” Guzma squatted down to get a better look from where he stood, staring intently at his fighter. The bug struggled for a few minutes as it remained determined to go on, but it was all too much. Oricorio’s relentless attacks had taken their toll, and Masquerain made one last effort to rouse itself before collapsing, totally spent.

 

“Masquerain is unable to battle! Oricorio is the winner!” The little red bird hopped up and down in delight, turning and bouncing right into its trainer’s waiting arms. Koa embraced the pokemon, cooing proudly.

 

“You did great, Oricorio!” She looked back at her rival, who had rushed out onto the field to check on his incapacitated partner. Guzma was holding Masquerain now, examining its injuries, reassuring it that it would be okay.

 

The sight set her on edge; not because of his concern for his pokemon, but because of what had happened the last time Koa had beaten him. Before, Guzma had come at her swinging, and Lucario had stepped in to intervene. Would he behave similarly after losing a second time? Koa squared her shoulders, frowning and waiting for the worst. Though, would he  _ really  _ pull a stunt like that again? Since arriving today, Guzma’s behavior had been markedly different, more calm, more  _ humble _ . Would be be able to keep that up after being beaten again? He returned Masquerain to its ball, and stood up straight. Guzma looked visibly disappointed, but not angry the way he had been the first time, just frustrated, like he was struggling to figure out why he had lost, and what he needed to do if he ever wanted to beat Koa. Clearly making a conscious effort to hold it together, he clenched his jaw before speaking. “I’ll be back to challenge ya again. ‘S many times as it takes.” With that, Guzma turned away and began a long march down the shore, trying to maintain a posture of pride.

 

Even if he had really hoped to win this time around, Guzma didn’t feel quite as surprised as he had after losing to Koa the first time. It still ate at him, annoyed him, but it didn’t feel like a moral outrage this time. Of course, his defeat hadn’t been as much of a public spectacle today. He wasn’t required to publicly defend his reputation if only a couple of people witnessed his weakness. He would have to get back to work now, figuring out what he would have to do in order to win a battle against Koa. Did he need to train up his team more? If he did, would that be enough? What quality did she have that Guzma was missing? She still irritated him to some degree. Normally, he would say that she had  _ some nerve _ , but Koa was all nerve, and the kind of person who  _ got on your nerves _ .  _ Tch.  _ Guzma sneered, annoyed to have had his life shaken up like this.

 

_ I guess I’ll see you next thursday, you wild bitch.  _


	4. Restless

Koa flipped on the light switch as she (finally) entered her house, the micro-home built from an old shipping container, for the night. As one would imagine, it was a rather small space, but it had enough room for everything she needed: a small, but fully-functioning kitchen, a full bathroom, and a bunk room that housed not only a queen-sized bed, but also plenty of storage space and a wall-mounted television. Maybe the dark wood paneling throughout wasn’t the best choice for making her home feel spacious, but it did create a cozy atmosphere, and contrasted nicely with the white subway tile in the kitchen. This was the first time since that fateful day that Koa had actually been  _ home _ . The couple of years spent in her grandparents’ home had been nice enough, but it wasn’t the same. After that, she’d begun her journey as a pokemon trainer, and had led a nomadic existence, save for the six years spent in the Kanto region for educational purposes.  _ And what are you doing with those two degrees now?  _ Koa brushed off the thought. Education simply for the sake of learning was a noble pursuit in its own right.

 

Knowing that she would most likely be able to stay in for the rest of the night, she changed out of her normal jeans into a pair of soft, stretchy leggings, preferring this more comfortable garment as she wound down for the night. All of her young trainers had gone to their rooms to rest, and didn’t need her now. If any of them decided to leave during the night, that would be their choice to make. They were here by their own decision; Koa didn’t lock them in. If they were old enough to journey out into the world on their own, they were old enough to decide when and where they wanted to go. However, after ten at night, the resource center’s kitchen and training modules were shut down, and the first aid center would only be used by Koa in the event of an emergency. Even if she couldn’t  _ force  _ the kids to go to bed, she could at least leave them with no other option. The last stragglers had  _ finally  _ retired to their rooms after a battle that had run longer than initially expected, and Koa herself was able to return to her own space, with Herdier at her heels, giving wide yawns that always ended with a little  _ arf _ . 

 

Running a center like this did entail quite a bit of paperwork. Koa had to keep detailed records of day-to-day operations, expenses, and any kind of negative incident that took place on the property. Even though Alola didn’t currently participate in the Pokemon League, the League did still sponsor resource centers like Koa’s in the region. As of late, Kukui had been putting forth a lot of effort to try and bring the League to the islands, to exist alongside the trial captain system, and Koa had been helping her cousin with some of the extensive paperwork, the case studies, the necessary evidence to suggest that Alola had the appropriate infrastructure to support such a system. Additionally, she had begun looking over the requirements for opening a gym here. She already had the space for it; with additional funding from the Pokemon League, she could build a permanent battle arena down on the beach. The biggest obstacle she would face opening a gym here would be the whole Team Skull situation, and Koa dreaded the thought of possibly having to pay the gang under the table in order to prevent them from hassling those who came to challenge the gym.

 

Before getting started with tonight’s stack of documents, she started a fresh pot of coffee. If Koa intended to have another late night tonight, she needed to be properly caffeinated. She sometimes wondered just how much of her energy came from the rich, black brew; certainly more than she got from sleep. Most nights, Koa only slept for four or five hours. It had been easy to run on so little sleep when she was younger, but as the years passed, and she grew older, the late nights and early mornings became more and more difficult. Thus, Koa now supplemented herself with chemical stimulants in the form of coffee and energy shots. The latter sometimes made her feel jittery, but it was better than feeling tired all the time. Sometimes, if things weren’t too busy, she could sneak in a short nap in the afternoon, but most days, she would run for twenty hours straight. Koa didn’t want to think about how this might affect her in the long run. She spent more time considering whether she should take up cigarettes; nicotine was supposed to keep you alert and focused, right? 

 

Several people had commented on Koa’s behavior before, worrying that it would be bad for her health, but Koa herself usually ignored these remarks. Sure, it  _ looked  _ bad, but she knew that she was getting enough sleep to function properly, even if it seemed like a miniscule amount. It was fine. It didn’t worry Koa at all. Besides, she was used to this; she’d been living this way for what, seven or eight years now, and as many people had had something to say about it: her younger siblings, Kukui, Spark, even one or two of her young trainers who had looked out the window to notice that her lights were still on at two in the morning. Spark had once made a remark that Koa spent more time taking care of others than she did taking care of herself. Of course, that comment had been followed by the words  _ “so let  _ me _ take care of  _ you, _ ” _ so she hadn’t thought too much of it at the time. In any case, taking care of everyone around her had been Koa’s  _ modus operandi  _ for a  _ very  _ long time; she wasn’t going to suddenly change anytime soon.

 

Of course, being a pokemon trainer, Koa spent a great deal of time taking care of others out of necessity. Under her care, the tiny Rowlet with whom she’d started had grown and evolved into Decidueye, who gazed at Koa now from where it perched across the room. Like its trainer, it was active in the nighttime hours, along with its best buddy, Noctowl. The two of them had free reign of her home during their waking hours, and Koa always left a window open for them to get out and stretch their wings for a while. They always returned the next morning, and Koa would find them sleeping side by side, hunched over on her couch. As she waited for her coffee to brew, she strode over to gently stroke the birds’ glossy feathers, earning an affectionate titter. It was interesting; as biologically similar as the two pokemon were, their cries differed greatly. Noctowl hooted gently, while Decidueye’s screech was piercing, more similar to the other raptors that Koa had trained. It gave a soft cry now, lifting off its perch and coming to rest on her shoulder, picking through her thick hair with its beak, attempting to preen her.

 

Placing her coffee mug on one of the shelves built into her headboard, Koa climbed into bed next to a thick stack of papers, a couple of heavy books, and her laptop computer. She propped herself up on her pillows, knowing that she would start to get sleepy if she didn’t sit up straight. The laptop whirred to life as soon as she opened it up, returning Koa to the narrative she had begun regarding her facility’s readiness to support a fully-functioning gym. Of course this was all very dull, even to Koa, but it had to be done, and she preferred to get this kind of thing out of the way first, when her energy was greatest. The Pokemon League was quite stringent when awarding accreditation to new gyms, and even more so when investigating whether it wanted to expand into new regions. If Alola passed the first review, that is, if the accreditation team accepted the region’s heavy portfolio of arguments and supporting documents of why it should be permitted to join the League, a team of experts would come out, and complete a thorough analysis of anything that raised their suspicions. Koa pinched the bridge of her nose between her fingers.  _ Team Skull would definitely raise their suspicions.  _

 

After finishing up as much accreditation work as she could manage, she moved on to the more mundane paperwork that went along with running a resource center such as hers. Koa closed down her computer and put it on a shelf, reaching for a folder of blank forms. She’d been putting off filling out a couple of incident reports, as those never brought up pleasant memories. Furthermore, Koa knew that the one event, when Team Skull had invaded her property to challenge her, didn’t exactly paint her in a flattering light, calling into question whether her center was truly safe and secure, even if she  _ had  _ handled the situation with utmost professionalism and competence. It just didn’t look good. She completed the form anyway, cringing as she recalled the details. Even if victory had been hers on that day, and she had suffered no form of humiliation, it had still been uncomfortable, an encounter that left a bad taste in everyone’s mouths. Koa quickly moved on to the next form, reporting a recent incident where a trainer had fallen while coming down a flight of stairs. She had sustained a few nasty scrapes and bruises, and busted her tailbone pretty badly, but was ultimately okay. 

 

Koa’s mind drifted back to Team Skull, to their leader, Guzma. Ever since that first battle, he had turned up to challenge her again, every thursday. Surprisingly, it didn’t bother her too much now, even if Guzma himself  _ did  _ occasionally grate on her nerves. He had toned down his prideful and brash qualities, but he was just...A Lot. Guzma could still sometimes be a sore loser, but, he’d increasingly begun to blame himself for his failures, rather than getting angry with Koa. She found it a bit irritating either way; why couldn’t he just accept the loss and go on with his life until deciding to try again. Why did he need to throw a temper tantrum like an overgrown child? Koa huffed. Guzma would usually be polite upon his arrival, even if he put on a prideful front, going on about how  _ this week  _ he’d beat her down. Why couldn’t he be as gracious in defeat? He probably had a lot going on that she didn’t know about, Koa realized.  _ But that isn’t an excuse to act like an asshole.  _

 

Whatever was going on over at the Team Skull base, Koa knew that it was Guzma’s pride that kept him coming back here, challenging her again and again, week after week. He was probably used to winning most battles, and so this one opponent that he just couldn’t seem to beat probably frustrated him. He wouldn’t be satiated until he overcame this obstacle. Thus, Koa expected to see him week after week until he eventually either gave up, or, by some miracle, managed to beat her. Their weekly matchups had become routine; she would wake up on thursdays expecting him to drop by eventually. Whether she liked it or not, Guzma had become a part of her life. Having seen how brutal he could be when angry, Koa worried about the wellbeing of the children who had been convinced to join the gang. Did...the boss ever take his anger out on them? And what kind of environment were they being brought up in? Certainly they all had to come from rough backgrounds if  _ Team Skull  _ was the preferable choice, but it couldn’t be objectively  _ good _ . 

 

Herdier stirred awake, nosing Koa as if to remind her just how late it had gotten while she worked. The time neared three in the morning now; she finished up this one last form before filing it away, returning all of her materials to their appropriate shelf. Koa quickly applied her night cream and retired to the bathroom to brush her teeth before switching off the overhead light and settling down under the covers. She could hear the flutter of wings as her two owls left home for the night; they usually waited until the lights went out, making sure that she actually went to sleep before taking their leave. Though they couldn’t tell her in words that they worried about her, they expressed their concern through their behavior, monitoring her sleep patterns and reminding her, as best they could, that she needed to eat and rest. Koa hated to make them worry, but she also had no intention of changing her habits. She was an adult; she could take care of herself just fine, thank you.

 

\---

 

A short distance away, Guzma too had stayed awake until the late hours of the night, though in his case, it was unintentional. Though he’d never been the kind of person to regularly get “a good night’s sleep,” it had been even more difficult lately. He felt restless, struggling to get to a place where he was calm enough to sink into unconsciousness. Guzma just couldn’t feel settled, or content; it was like he needed to stay awake, working, thinking, bettering himself. He was supposed to be Team Skull’s leader, but it seemed like he had been letting the team down lately, and that didn’t sit well with him. Thus, he remained wide awake, staring up at the ceiling even as he  _ had  _ started to get tired. His mind raced, thinking through the same things, the same scenarios, over and over like a broken record. It frustrated him that he couldn’t know  _ exactly  _ what would happen the next time he went to challenge Koa, and plan accordingly, but Guzma could recognize his plentiful past mistakes, running through them repeatedly, along with his strategy to correct them the next time around.

 

For the past... _ month  _ now, Guzma had returned there every week to try again, and each time, the outcome was the same. No matter how much time he spent training, no matter how much time he spent coming up with new strategies, he just couldn’t seem to beat that girl. She was a very strong trainer, he had to admit.  _ I sure know how to pick my rivals…  _ Even though Koa had, in the past, seemed annoyed by his visits, she didn’t seem so bothered now, almost like she had come to expect them. Of course, when a person came by each week on the same day, it was bound to become routine. Every week she would finish up what she was doing, and indulge Guzma in the battle he sought, and every week she would win. She never acted cocky or smug afterward, but that just fired him up even more. Koa’s calm demeanor seemed to indicate that she felt sure that he couldn’t beat her.  _ Well, I’ll show her.  _ Their original wager, that she should have to pay “protections” to Team Skull, hadn’t come up in some time, and the question could be asked whether that was still the primary motivator for their weekly meetings.

 

Even Team Skull seemed to have forgotten the initial challenge. When Guzma had returned to Shady House from this week’s visit, Plumeria had acted surprised. “I didn’t know you left,” she remarked. Guzma related to her where he had been, explaining that he had tried once again to show that woman who was boss around here, and Plumeria stared at him in disbelief. “You’re still doing that?” 

 

“Well...yeah.” Such a choice had seemed obvious. “I gotta beat her. Y’know, for the  _ team _ .”

 

Plumeria scoffed. “You’re wasting your time. It’s not gonna happen; that woman is too strong a trainer. You should have given up a long time ago.” For someone who had been so intent on making a power play against Koa and her resource center, Plumeria certainly had lost interest now, losing hope in her leader with a quickness that certainly didn’t do anything to bolster Guzma’s self-esteem.

 

Honestly, it wasn’t about money, or Team Skull’s reputation. It was about  _ Guzma’s  _ reputation, and  _ Guzma’s  _ pride. He was so used to being the big fish in the little pond that was Po Town, and now that someone had come along that he  _ just couldn’t beat _ , he was unable to let it go. Guzma wouldn’t be satisfied until he finally won a match against Koa, and, moreover, he couldn’t think about much else. He’d always had a one-track-mind, and once he got fixated on a specific goal, he always saw it through. After all, Guzma had disappointed so many other people in his life; he wouldn’t be okay letting himself down too. 

 

For reasons other than simply his inability to beat her, Koa left him feeling frustrated. What was up with that girl, anyway? She was quite unlike Guzma in that she didn’t always let on what she was thinking or feeling, which was irritating for someone so determined to defeat her. And why had she come to Po Town, of all places? It wasn’t exactly a hot tourist destination, or even a pleasant locale, at least compared to other parts of the island, and of Alola. Here, it rained most days, leaving it neither as warm nor as sunny as the region’s other beaches. Even if Koa turned out to be the kind of person who liked rainy weather, it still didn’t add up. Why come to a place that had been all but taken over by gang activity? She had to have some kind of personal connection to this place…

 

Guzma made a gruff sound of discontent, taking the finished cigarette from his mouth and putting it out in the ashtray on his nightstand. Spending the rest of the night thinking about this wasn’t going to get him anywhere; best to continue this fruitless train of thought in the harsh light of day.


	5. Food for Thought

Early Monday morning brought some small respite from the heavy rains that typically inundated the area. Soft rays of light peeked through the clouds, casting small spots of warmth across the town. Koa rose from her bed early as she always did, going straight to the kitchen to start a quick, but healthy breakfast for her visiting trainers. Oatmeal might normally seem like a rather dull and tasteless thing to eat, but with a little bit of brown sugar and cinnamon, and a few fresh bananas sliced into it, the dish became rather appealing to the children beginning to trickle down the stairs. After eating, they ran off to train or battle, with a couple heading out to continue their journeys, and Koa set about determining what she needed to get done on this particular day. She figured that she should take advantage of the pleasant weather, and try to take care of some things outdoors. Some of her plants had begun to yield their bright, shiny fruits, and they needed to be harvested before they rotted away on the vine. Furthermore, today would provide a good opportunity to run some errands, seeing as she wouldn’t have to go out in the rain if she went today.

 

Koa would have to go to the post office, to send off a stack of documents she’d completed for Kukui, and to pick up some supplies she’d had delivered from the nearest PokeMart. She hadn’t quite run out of anything in the kitchen, but it would be good to stock up while she was out. There was a fresh seafood market just outside town, and Koa had a hankering for a rich, spicy, roux-based dish that she’d learned to make while living with her Kalosi grandparents. Of course, she would need peppers too, and rice…  _ I’ll make a list.  _

 

“Are you sure you’re okay looking after things here while I’m gone?” The question was a formality more than anything. Lucario nodded sagely as Koa checked her bag to make sure she had everything that she needed.  _ Phone, keys, wallet. PKW.  _ Of course the pokemon would be fine keeping the kids out of trouble while she was out. It was Lucario who had always done the same for Koa and her siblings when they were young. It could even perform some basic first aid if necessary. Lucario waved her on as if to say,  _ Go, on. Get _ , and Koa smiled, knowing that things would be fine without her for a couple of hours. 

 

She started down the long driveway, with Herdier racing after her, yipping.  _ I want to go too!  _ Koa nodded at the little dog, grinning, and it matched her pace, trotting along happily. Not planning to buy more than she could carry home, she chose to walk, to enjoy the warmth of the sun on her skin and get a little bit of exercise at the same time. Now, it  _ would  _ be a lengthy walk, considering the scarcity of commerce in this town. Since it was on the decline, due to Team Skull’s activity here, there were only a couple of grocery stores left, and neither was particularly close. Koa could remember the old days, when Po Town had been a small, but economically fruitful place. Despite the generally-rainy weather, visitors filled the sidewalks, popping in and out of the eclectic little shops that had once lined the main drag. Food vendors, selling fresh fruit cups or shaved ice, could be found on every block, offering treats to passersby. Of course, that was a long time ago now; Po Town had been almost unrecognizable when Koa had first returned here. Still, it was home, and she had no intention of letting this place die out without a fight.

 

Herdier stopped short, its long, fuzzy tail going up like a flag. Koa turned to look at what had gotten the pokemon’s attention, confused when she noticed the two Team Skull grunts over by a pair of dumpsters. They had the lid open, and one young teenager held the other around the middle and she leaned inside, digging around. Maybe one of them had thrown something inside by mistake? No, that wasn’t the case. The boy pulled her out, along with a big, rattling trash bag. Carefully, they opened the bag, rummaging through the garbage within and making faces of disgust as they came across something foul-smelling. It quickly became apparent that they were looking for aluminum cans and glass bottles: recyclables. Koa raised an eyebrow; she hadn’t ever considered Team Skull to be an eco-conscious sort of group. It was more likely that these kids were planning to sell the cans and bottles for a little bit of pocket change. While it was the more likely option, that didn’t really make much sense either. The gang had complete control over this town, extorting the few people who still lived here for whatever bit of money they could. They should be swimming in cash, not dumpster-diving for a few cents per bottle.

 

“Ah...excuse me.” The two grunts looked up to see who had addressed them, freezing when they saw Koa, regarding her warily. “Can I ask you why you’re going through the trash?” The two continued to stare at her blankly, afraid to say anything that might incriminate them. “You’re not in trouble or anything; I’m just curious.”

 

“I think it’s okay to tell her,” the girl said finally.

 

“We’re collecting cans and bottles to sell back to the recycling center. We’ll put the rest of the trash back in the dumpster, promise.”

 

“Do you need money? Can’t you just ask your boss for some? Certainly-”

 

“No, no.” The girl cut her off. “He’s already got enough to worry about.”

 

“But if you need money…”

 

“We can get it ourselves.” The boy pointed to the bar across the street. “This place throws out so much stuff that we can get enough cup noodles to last us a few days.”

 

_ You can’t live on instant noodles alone _ , Koa wanted to say, but she held her tongue. These kids were adamant about being independent. “Is...Is money really that tight for you guys? What about all of the businesses you guys have taken over?” Surely her resource center hadn’t had  _ that  _ much of an effect.

 

“Well, we don’t exactly get to keep what the Team earns from that.”

 

Koa’s lip curled. “What, does your  _ boss  _ just keep it all for himself?”

 

“Oh, no, no! He doesn’t get to have it either. I mean, the Team gets a stipend from it every month, but most of it goes to-”

 

“Rapp, don’t say anything else. It’s s’posed to be a secret, remember?”

 

Koa frowned. The implication here was that Team Skull answered to some bigger, badder boss than Guzma, that, while they put on a tough front, they were secretly struggling to stay afloat. “So  _ all  _ of you are broke right now?”

 

“Yeah. I don’t remember the last time I saw the Boss eat something. We offered to share with him, but he told us to keep it for ourselves.”

 

Now Koa felt kind of bad for being so hard on Team Skull before. Yes, the things they had done to this town, and what they were still doing, was wrong, but it seemed like the situation was a little more complicated that it had initially appeared. There was some larger organization taking advantage of the group’s existence, and the Team was, at least sometimes, living in poverty. Even if their activities were questionable at best, they still deserved to have a meal more nutritious and fulfilling than instant noodles. She dug around in her bag, locating her wallet and taking some cash from it. “Here.” Koa held the money out to the kids. “Take this and go get a sandwich or something. You need to eat some real food.”

 

The boy looked a little embarrassed by her offer, his pride having made him determined to make it on his own. “You ain’t gotta do that.”

 

“I know. I  _ want  _ to. You kids need to have something with actual nutritional value. And I don’t want you to have to dig around in the trash all day to accomplish that.” She held her arm out further. “Really. Take it.”

 

\---

 

As she unloaded her grocery bags one by one, putting the items away, Koa’s mind kept drifting back to what she had learned before about Team Skull’s financial situation. Despite their influence on the area, they had very little money, with members scrounging up change to buy cheap snacks, or simply going without.  _ “I don’t remember the last time I saw the Boss eat something.”  _ Koa leaned against the kitchen counter, crossing her arms and frowning. Even if the group had given her nothing but trouble since her arrival, they were still human beings that needed three squares a day to maintain their health. She couldn’t say how many people were living in that house, or how much money they were receiving for living expenses, but unless these funds were somehow being misappropriated, which didn’t necessarily seem to be the case, the cost of living for all of Team Skull was greater than their funding, at least on occasion. Two of those kids had gotten a proper meal today, but what about tomorrow, and what about all of the grunts that Koa  _ hadn’t _ run into earlier? The Team could be irritating, but she wouldn’t just let them all go hungry if there was something she could do about it. It wouldn’t be right to know about this and not intervene, even in some small way.

 

Koa looked out the window and into her garden, where even from here she could see the ripe tomatoes so red they almost glowed, the vines crawling up their trellises bearing fat squash in several different colors. Honestly, even when her center was operating at full capacity, she’d never use  _ all  _ of the produce her plants yielded. There was an extra sack of rice in the pantry, totally unopened, and Koa had been storing scraps of meat and bone in her freezer, intending to eventually use it for stock. She could easily boil up a batch and put it into screw-top jars for transport. If she were to do this, to donate her surplus food items, it would probably be best to throw in a couple of ready-to-cook meals; ingredients she would prep ahead of time, spices already measured, vegetables already cut and portioned. She didn’t have a good idea of how skilled any of Team Skull’s members were in the kitchen, so doing most of the work for them would reduce the margin of error. Koa couldn’t exactly picture Guzma at the stove, with an apron and oven mitts. The mental image did give her a good chuckle, however.

 

After finding a couple of boxes to put things in, she went out to her garden, basket in hand, harvesting several of each kind of ripe fruit or vegetable- squash, tomatoes, carrots, onions… Koa made several trips back and forth, her basket full each time, separating the various items into plastic bags for transit and adding them to the box. While a large pot of stock boiled away on the stove, filling the house with a rich, peppery aroma, she put together a ready-to-prepare curry, pre-mixing the spices in a small jar and writing down the preparation instructions and taping them to the lid. Feeling generous, Koa even went so far as to bake a fresh loaf of bread; sandwiches were always an easy thing to make, and far more nutritious than other convenience foods. Before long, the boxes were full. She hoped that the food would last the Team for at least a week, if they rationed it well, but it would certainly at least provide a couple of days worth of fulfilling meals. 

 

“I hope we can get there and back before it starts raining again.” Koa looked up at the sky, eyeing the gathering clouds warily. 

 

Lucario only grunted in acknowledgment. It wasn’t so wild about this whole idea. Of course, it still held a vendetta against Guzma after that first day, when he’d tried to throw a punch at Koa. Of course, Lucario had always been like that, always so protective of her. Of course, it came as no surprise that the pokemon would be that way, considering...but it still amused her that it was still like this even as she’d grown into a fully capable adult. 

 

They finally managed to locate Shady House, which wasn’t in bad condition, despite looking like it had been here for a long time. From what Koa could tell, no one was outside right now, and no one had yet noticed their presence. That was good; she wanted to get out of here unseen if at all possible. If Guzma were to find out that she was the one who had left this food here, he’d never accept it, too proud to take charity, especially from Koa. She and Lucario simply left the boxes on the porch before knocking loudly on the large wooden door. Normally, she would have rung the doorbell instead, but only a few scraggly wires remained where the button had once been. After making their presence known, the two made a mad dash for the street before anyone could catch them in the act.

 

\---

 

“Boss! Boss!” The pounding on the door woke Guzma from his restless sleep. He opened it, still bleary-eyed, to find a gaggle of grunts there, looking as though Christmas had come early.

 

“Man, what is it? Ya boy was tryna catch some Zs!” He rubbed at his tired eyes, trying to re-focus his vision. 

 

One of the grunts tugged at his sleeve. “Come and look!” They dragged him into the kitchen, pointing to a couple of boxes and a small bag, all overflowing with food items. “Someone just left all this on the doorstep! Guzma looked over the gifts- fresh fruits and vegetables, a loaf of bread, spice mixtures… He picked up one such jar of colorful powders, reading the recipe that had been folded up and stuck to the lid.  _ “Hoenn-style curry.”  _

 

“You really don’t know where this came from?”

 

“Nope!” the kids answered honestly. “We heard someone banging on the door, but when we went to answer it, no one was there, just all of this stuff! Can you believe it?”

 

“No...I really can’t…” Guzma’s mind was already wandering. Truthfully, he had a pretty good idea of where this had  _ actually  _ come from. He’d seen the carefully-tended gardens at that house, fruits ripening under Koa’s nurturing eye. Somehow, she must have known that the Team was tight on funds right now. Maybe she’d caught a couple of grunts stealing food or something. “Y’know, I think I figured out who’s behind all of this.”

 

“Miss Koa did it.” A couple of grunts who hadn’t been in the room peeked around the corner, eyeing the gifts curiously. “She saw us digging in the trash for cans earlier, and gave us some money for lunch.”

 

Guzma frowned. “You asked her for  _ money _ ?”

 

“Wha- no! We tried to refuse it, but she wouldn’t take no for an answer!”

 

If all of this had taken place like the grunt said, then Koa definitely knew about Team Skull’s financial difficulties. Guzma cringed, wondering how much the kids had let slip to her. Of course, if she knew the whole truth, she probably wouldn’t have done all of this, more pressed to kick down the Aether Foundation’s door. No...she probably just knew that money was tight, and she didn’t want the kids going hungry. He appreciated the gesture. Hell, he might would even go so far as to say that he was  _ touched  _ by it. Even if she frustrated the shit out of him, Koa was a good person. “ _ Tch.  _ She didn’t need to do all this…”

 

Before he could say anything else, the grunts were already digging through the boxes, locating the rest of the ingredients necessary for the included recipe. It took a few minutes to clear off the rarely-used stove, which had been functioning as an improvised storage area for some time now, but soon they had started a pot of rice and set about cooking the actual curry. One of the older grunts had taken charge of the endeavor, assigning tasks to the others. She foisted a pack of meat at one kid. “Here, cut this into bite-size pieces.” Another child was tasked with mincing cloves of garlic and grating a stump of fresh ginger. Before long a brilliant orange mixture bubbled away on the stove, filling the room with a rich, spicy aroma the likes of which hadn’t graced the space in a long time. Once the meal had been completed, it was distributed in equal portions to all those present. Even Plumeria, who typically kept mostly to herself, wandered in, drawn by the delicious smells coming from the kitchen. For the first time that Guzma could actually remember, the whole Team sat down to eat together, marveling over the flavor of the food, some of the kids stating wistfully that they wished they could eat like this every day.

 

After such a satisfying meal, most of Team Skull’s younger members retired to the house’s other rooms for the night. It had been a long time since they’d been able to go to bed with full stomachs. Guzma remained in the kitchen for some time, just thinking about things. Even after her kind overture, he still needed to keep trying to beat Koa. The hour grew late, and he imagined that by how, he was the only one who remained awake, taking another drag from his cigarette.

 

“You’re still smoking those nasty things?” Guzma didn’t need to turn around to see who had come into the room. “I believe you have something for me.” Lusamine stood in front of him, arms crossed.

 

Guzma sighed, reaching into his pocket to produce a single envelope, not quite as thick as it had been in months past. Lusamine silently thumbed through the bills inside, raising an eyebrow and a wordless question.  _ “Where’s the rest of my fucking money?”  _ Guzma put out his cigarette in the plastic ashtray in front of him. “Business ain’t been so good lately, chief.”

 

“Oh? And why not?”

 

Guzma shrugged in response. Quite honestly, Koa’s resource center  _ had  _ pulled revenue away from Team Skull-controlled businesses, but he wasn’t about to sell her out to Lusamine. He might have in the past, when he saw the young woman as a nuisance, but she was nice enough on the occasions that Guzma went to challenge her, and she’d made sure the grunts didn’t go hungry until they got their monthly stipend. It wouldn’t be good if Aether went after her.  _ Consider this me repaying the solid I owe you.  _

 

“That’s unfortunate. I suppose you’ll just have to find another way to pay your dues to the Foundation.” Lusamine eyed the boxes of fresh vegetables still on the counter. “What beautiful produce! Where did you get it?”

 

“One of the grunts brought it home. I dunno where it came from.” It was a lie, but once again, Guzma didn’t want Koa, an innocent bystander, to get wrapped up in all of this.

 

Lusamine stood admiring a sleek purple eggplant for a while before hoisting the boxes into her arms. “This will make such nutritious food for my pokemon. You don’t mind, do you? Consider it part of what I’m owed.”

 

Guzma clenched his jaw. Koa had left that stuff for the  _ grunts _ , but of course he couldn’t argue. He’d already made his bed with the lie he chose. “Be my fuckin’ guest,” he muttered gruffly, shrugging.

 

He still sat there in the kitchen when the next morning arrived, having smoked one cigarette after another, until he’d finished the pack. Plumeria came in to fix herself a cup of tea, shocked to find the boxes of food gone. “Where did it all go?”

 

“You know where it all went,” Guzma muttered darkly.

 

“She was here last night?” Plumeria looked worried. “The money…”

 

“Who was here? Where did the boxes go?” A couple of grunts peeked around the corner, baffled by the empty counter. Their disappointed gaze slowly crept over to their boss, whose shame and disappointment emanated from his face.

 

“The boss lady was here. She wanted the stuff and I wasn’t really in a position to say no. I let y’all down, and I’m sorry for it.”

 

“Miss Lusamine took it?”

 

Plumeria crossed her arms, looking irritated. “Yes, she did.” She was as angry about the situation as Guzma was depressed. Lusamine had quite literally taken food out of these kids’ mouths, and it didn’t sit well with her.

 

“Miss Koa gave us that stuff. We should tell her what happened. She deserves to know.”

 

“No.” Guzma and Plumeria spoke at the same time. The boss cleared his throat to explain. “Look, we can’t just go around tellin’ the world that Lusamine and the Aether Foundation is backin’ us. If they were to find out that Koa knows about the situation, it won’t be pretty for her, and that ain’t really the best way to repay her generosity, is it?”

 

“I guess not…”

 

“Besides,” Guzma continued. “That gal’s got a bad habit of gettin’ into things that don’t necessarily concern her. If she found out what happened, I wouldn’t put it past her to go knockin’ down Lusamine’s door.”

 

“And we simply can’t have something like that happening,” Plumeria added.

 

“So really, just let it go for now, aight? I’ll take care of things. I won’t let ya go hungry.” He locked eyes with his administrator, who he knew was ride or die for these kids. “ _ We  _ won’t let you go hungry. I’m ya boy, remember? I got you.”


	6. Just a Normal Thursday

Before Guzma could even properly process the passage of time, another week came and went, and another thursday reared its ugly head. He would be going back once again to challenge Koa for what felt like the millionth time; such an event had somehow become part of his routine. By now, Plumeria wasn’t the only one questioning why he still spent his thursdays like this. The grunts had become skeptical too. Of course, this only fueled Guzma to keep trying; if the  _ grunts  _ were beginning to lose faith in his abilities, well, then he was slipping up in his responsibilities as the boss, now wasn’t he? At the same time, every loss only made him look worse. It had been  _ months  _ now, and he still couldn’t win a simple battle? Even with all of the hard work he put in training his team? It didn’t look good, making him appear incompetent at  _ best _ . 

 

At worst, it made it seem like Guzma didn’t really care about what he was doing.

 

He himself almost had to question why he was still so fixated on this. If he hadn’t won against Koa by now, would he ever? Guzma wondered sometimes whether he should just cut his losses and move on; wasn’t he just wasting time and getting his pokemon hurt unnecessarily? But...it had been a long time since anyone had been a real rival to him. With the team, and the experience that Guzma had, traveling trainers were easy pickings, and maybe he and his fighters had gone soft over the years. Koa provided an  _ actual  _ challenge, a goal to constantly work toward. A trainer could only grow and get better by going up against tough opponents, which Team Skull hadn’t faced in a while now. Even if Guzma hadn’t won a single battle against Koa, he’d still gotten a lot stronger than he’d been before. He’d even had a couple of close calls recently, where she’d had to scramble for a last-second hail mary to clench the win. No, he hadn’t beaten her yet, but maybe in the future, if he kept working at it.

 

Koa glanced over her shoulder as he shuffled into the resource center’s kitchen. Some of the kids had told him that he would find her in there, washing dishes. Every week it was a new batch of young trainers, since few ever stayed more than a couple of days, and they were always vaguely wary of Guzma, knowing the rumors. However, considering that he didn’t ever bust in yelling anymore, they didn’t actually seem frightened, simply telling him where he could find the lady of the house and then quickly returning to whatever it was that they had been doing before. Koa didn’t appear surprised to see him; of course, she hadn’t been in a long time, having grown accustomed to their weekly ritual. “You’re early today,” she commented. “We were just finishing up breakfast.”

 

Guzma shrugged. “I didn’t really realize that it was all that early.” He didn’t want to admit that he’d come to look forward to their weekly face-offs, and that he’d been  _ so bored  _ just sitting around at home, waiting.

 

“Well, I’ve got a couple of things I need to take care of, and then we can get started.”

 

“Do you cook breakfast for these kids every morning?” Guzma much preferred awkward small talk to just standing around like a weirdo.

 

Koa looked up from the pan she had been scrubbing, surprised at his attempt to make conversation. “Uh, yeah. Actually, I cook all of their meals, or at least, like, provide  _ something  _ to eat. Sometimes I just give in and order pizzas, but yeah, generally I cook…” She cut herself off, realizing that she had started to ramble.

 

“You must be good at it, huh?”

 

“I-I guess so. I haven’t really had any complaints.” Koa laughed nervously, not used to this kind of interaction with Guzma.

 

“Nah, I know you’re good at cookin’.”

 

“And how do you know that?” She raised an eyebrow, smirking. “You been stealing leftovers out of the fridge or something?”

 

He went bug-eyed then, shifting his gaze toward the large, stainless steel appliance. “You got leftovers?” What Koa did next took him by surprise. She laughed. It was a light, musical sort of chuckle, but it was genuine. Guzma had never expected that he might do something to amuse her. “Anyway, I know you’re a good cook because of the stuff you left us.”

 

Koa looked away then, trying to hide the light blush dusting her cheeks. “You figured me out, huh?”

 

“Yeah, two of the grunts told me how you gave them some lunch money, so I figured it was you that knew about, well, you know.” He didn’t want to tell her explicitly about the team’s financial woes. “You ain’t have to do that, you know.”

 

“I know...I just didn’t want anyone to have to go hungry.” Koa stopped her work momentarily, resting her hands on the edge of the sink. “They mentioned to me that you hadn’t been eating.”

 

Guzma tugged his sunglasses down over his eyes, embarrassed. “You ain’t gotta worry about me…” he mumbled.

 

“I worry about everybody,” Koa told him simply. “It’s what I do.”

 

He hadn’t planned to tell her before, but, hearing this, Guzma  _ really  _ didn’t have the heart to tell Koa what had happened to her gifts. She had been so thoughtful to do a thing like that, for a group of people who had only given her trouble before, and they had paid her back by letting it all be stolen. Of course Guzma hadn’t really had a choice in the matter, but it still felt bad. It would look like he had been careless, flippant about Koa’s generosity. “The one recipe you left; we made it and ate it all together. It was really good; that’s how I know you’re a good cook.

 

It was Koa’s turn to be embarrassed. She pulled the hood of her sweatshirt over her head, pulling the strings tight and groaning. “You know flattery will get you nowhere, right?” Guzma could tell that she was trying to appear indignant, but he could see through it. It was strange to have this kind of friendly interaction with her, but he wasn’t complaining.

 

\---

 

“Golisopod is unable to continue battle! Braviary is the winner!” Koa stuffed her hand into a hefty leather falconry glove before calling the massive raptor back. Her entire arm sank down considerably as the heavy bird settled onto her hand, its long, dagger-like talons unable to pierce the thick material. Guzma sighed, returning his defeated pokemon to its ball. Yet again, his strongest fighter had been defeated by one of Koa’s impressive team members. She had used Braviary in battle before, giving her opponent the opportunity to observe some of its moves. Guzma had been working with Golisopod to try and use its steely armor to reflect sunlight, thereby reducing Braviary’s ability to use its “Keen Eye” move. However, he had severely underestimated just how much its “”Sheer Force” power could strengthen a “Steel Wing” attack, which Koa had neglected to use during Guzma’s first encounter with the raptor, keeping it a secret until today. She was a clever strategist, he had to give her that.

 

While he managed to retain his composure, he did feel disappointed by the outcome of their fight. Mostly, he was upset with himself, for letting his pokemon take a beating just for the sake of his own ego. His whole team worked so hard on his behalf, and he only let them down in return. Even if it wasn’t the result that Guzma wanted, he had to admit that he wasn’t all that surprised by it. He hadn’t managed to earn a victory so far; why would things suddenly change now? It was unlikely that he would be able to beat her for a long time, if ever. Koa continued to train her own pokemon, too, and she herself would only gain more experience and wisdom over time. This kind of steady progression made it almost impossible for Guzma to ever catch up. But it wasn’t like he had any intention of giving up any time soon. 

 

He sighed, realizing that the only thing he’d had to look forward to today was now finished. Guzma would either have to go back to that big, empty house, or just mull aimlessly around Po Town for the rest of the day. Neither seemed particularly stimulating. If he’d had a little bit of cash on him, he might have been able to buy a couple of grams and waste the day on a few bowls, but it had been a while since Guzma had had enough disposable income for something like that. Besides, he knew that he should use the time doing something productive.  _ But...do I  _ really  _ have anything better to do?  _ Only so much time could be used for training before his pokemon got worn out, and Plumeria had already griped at him for loitering around town too much, looking like a bum. The leader of Team Skull should carry himself with a little bit more dignity, she argued.

 

Having made up his mind to go home and take a six-hour depression nap, Guzma turned to leave. He took a few steps down the beach and then stopped short. Part of him felt like he should thank Koa one last time for what she had done. After all, it  _ was  _ a pretty incredible act of generosity toward a bunch of hooligans who’d given her nothing but trouble. Guzma turned back around, seeing that she’d already started back up the steps to the house. “Hey, wait a sec.” Hearing his voice calling out to her, she paused, turning her head and raising an eyebrow. He trudged through the sand back toward her, embarrassed by how much of a physical effort it was for him. Maybe the months of ennui had finally come back to bite him in the ass, which  _ was  _ feeling a little bit softer these days.

 

“You good?” Koa asked him as he finally reached the boardwalk, breath heaving.

 

“Y-Yeah… I’m-” Guzma wheezed. “I’m fine.”

 

Koa’s raised eyebrow reached higher. “Did you need something?”

 

“I uh-” The words caught in Guzma’s throat momentarily, overcome with sudden shyness. This was quite unlike him. “I actually just wanted to thank you one last time for what you did before. Really...it was more than we deserve.”

 

“Pfft.” Unaccustomed to this kind of attention, especially from  _ him _ , Koa waved him off, trying not to make it into a  _ thing _ . “Everyone deserves to eat. It was the least I could do. Really. It’s not a big deal.”

 

“Are you sure?”

 

“Yeah.” Her tone was more than a little awkward, but Guzma didn’t question it any further. “Actually…” She relaxed her posture, thinking. “Let me show you something.” Curious, he followed her back up the wooden steps, lightly worn-down by the briny air, and around to the side of the house, where a variety of plant species had begun to take over.

 

In the few months that Koa had been here, this garden of her creation had taken root, the bushes and vines climbing high as the native trees, almost forming a sort of maze. Guzma could easily have gotten lost had he not been following behind her, since she knew the terrain well. Eyeing all of the ripening fruits and vegetables surrounding him, he quickly understood why she didn’t consider her edible gifts to be too much of a burden. There was so much here...she probably didn’t miss what she had given away at all. “Here, try this.” Koa pulled a fat orange off the tree next to her, its bright flesh mottled with specks of red. “I didn’t know how well it would do with being transplanted, but…” Guzma dug his thumb through the thick peel, prying the fruit open, its rosy-colored juice running down the side of his hand. He was surprised to see a deep red inside rather than the normal golden orange, but deposited a section of it into his mouth, pleased by the tart richness of this varietal. “Good, right? It’s a blood orange.”

 

“I ain’t ever had one before.”

 

Guzma had spent the past few months so focused on beating Koa that he hadn’t even noticed just how much she’d been able to accomplish here. Her resource center was up and running, with a steady stream of trainers coming in and out of it, and she’d nurtured this little piece of land into fruitfulness. Before he knew it, she was filling up another box with ripe treats for him to take back to the Team at home. “I’ve got more here than I can use. It’ll just go rotten, so  _ please  _ take it. Oh! And it any of y’all ever find yourselves in need of a hot meal, just come around at dinnertime and get a plate.” For someone who had been so frigid toward him in the beginning, Koa had seemingly warmed up to Team Skull’s presence, even if she didn’t quite approve of everything they did. Guzma couldn’t even think of anything to say in return, so taken by this sudden realization that...she really  _ was  _ an amazing sort of person. Before, he never could have imagined that she’d be anything but a high-strung elitist, intent on forcing the riff-raff out of  _ her  _ town.

 

After spending a few hours trying to figure out how to best use the produce that Koa had given him earlier ( _ “Just make a soup!”  _ she had told him), and serving it up much to the delight of his team, Guzma lay in bed, puffing on a cigarette and thinking about everything he had experienced that day. Mostly, he thought back to his realizations from before, how wrong he’d been with his first impression of Koa, and how she really was kind of a cool person. At the same time, he felt  _ really weird  _ about it. They were so familiar with one another now, and he had to wonder if they were becoming  _ friends _ . Would that really be the best thing for the Team? And then there was how much he looked forward to their weekly matches. Was that really appropriate? Of course, it really was the only distraction Guzma had from the banality of his life nowadays. It was as simple as that.

 

Of course it was.


	7. Poorly-Timed Realizations

\---

“I still can’t believe you keep going over there every single week.” Plumeria shook her head, sighing in frustration even though she knew there was no chance of convincing Guzma to deviate from his routine.

 

He shrugged. “Imma keep going until I win.” He knew that he was letting his stubbornness get the better of him, but he didn’t really care. These fights  _ were  _ forcing him to become stronger, after all. Could that really be a bad thing? Since Guzma had been enlisted to help clean up Shady House, and mow the lawn earlier in the day, he was getting a later start heading out to meet up with Koa. After all, he couldn’t just show up all sweaty and gross from his day of labor; he’d wanted a quick shower before leaving for his thursday ritual. Hopefully, it wasn’t too late now, being nearly five in the afternoon. It would be dinnertime before long, and Guzma knew that Koa would be none too pleased if he showed up in the middle of the meal, demanding a battle. Even he knew that such a thing would be rude.

 

“Hey Boss! You know if there’s anything to eat around here?” Several skullcap-adorned heads popped out from around the room, curious and hungry.

 

“Y’all got eyes! Go check the kitchen!”

 

The girl frowned at him. “There wasn’t anything in there. Just some canola oil and some eggs that are  _ way  _ out of date.”

 

“Then I guess there’s not anything to eat here. I mean, I guess you could check my room. There might be some stale chips or somethin’.”

 

“Can we come with you to Miss Koa’s? She might give us some more fruit or something.”

 

Guzma didn’t like their presumptuous attitude, but he did remember what Koa had told him before.  _ If any of y’all ever find yourselves in need of a hot meal, just come around at dinnertime and get a plate.  _ “Yeah, come on. I’m sure she’ll feed ya.” The excited grunts quickly yanked on their shoes, scurrying after him as he stepped outside.

 

He looked up at the sky, observing the dark clouds starting to roll in. Rain wasn’t exactly uncommon in Po Town; rather, it was more frequent than sunshine. It had been misting earlier as Guzma worked outside. However, these clouds weren’t of the ordinary sort. They were the kind that blocked out the sun completely, making it seem later in the day than it really was. The town was certainly in for a nasty storm later tonight. Guzma just hoped that it would hold out long enough for him to have his battle with Koa. It almost looked like the bottom would drop out any minute, but he wasn’t any kind of a weatherman. The grunts seemed equally wary, wondering aloud whether they should have brought an umbrella. If the storm started before they got back home, they would all be miserable. As they walked, the kids had to hold their hands to their heads, lest their caps get blown off by the heavy wind. They almost had to wonder if a hot meal was worth getting soaked to the bone.

 

By the time the small group arrived at the resource center, the question had become irrelevant. Light rain had begun to fall from the heavens, and it would only get heavier from here on out. Guzma and Koa would have to have their battle soon if they wanted to have it at all. The front door had thankfully been unlocked as always, and everyone was grateful to get inside where it was warm and dry. A young trainer on her way to the kitchen noticed their presence, watching them nervously. “Umm, you’re not here to take our pokemon, are you?”

 

“Nah,” Guzma reassured her. “Lucky for you, we’re just here to see the lady of the house. You know where she’s at?”

 

Hearing his voice, Koa stuck her head through the doorway. “You’re late.”

 

“Well pardon my ass,” he smirked. “I didn’t realize we had an appointment.”

 

The young woman snorted, rolling her eyes. “There’s clean towels in the closet under the stairs, if you wanna get dried off.”

 

Following her directions, they found the linens right where she had said they would be, and Guzma threw a towel over his head, wearing it like a hood as he strode into the kitchen to be a nuisance. The scent of fresh vegetables hit his nose, the sharp odor of onion and delicate umami of celery making his mouth water. “I know it’s gettin’ late, but is there any chance I can get that battle?”

 

“Uh, maybe after I finish  _ mise en place _ . Once I get cooking I won’t be able to stop until I’m done. This is kind of a demanding dish.”

 

“Yeah, uh, actually, I was wonderin’ if the grunts could get a plate.” It felt weird to ask this of her, but she had said…

 

Koa seemed unbothered. “Oh, of course! You can all have some.” She flashed a quick smile. “I hope you can handle spicy food.”

 

“Girl, spicy is my  _ favorite _ .”

 

“Good, because these chilies are  _ gorgeous _ .” She split a fat, red pepper down the middle, holding it up to her nose and inhaling, sighing at the fresh, zesty aroma. She was one of those people who just had a passion for everything she did, and wanted to share that joy with as many people as possible. In the past, Guzma might have found it annoying, being around someone so damn  _ peppy _ , but having gotten to know her gradually, he actually thought of it as one of her more endearing qualities.

 

He waited patiently as she finished preparing the vegetables, tossing the onion, celery, green pepper, and red chili into a small bowl together. Once Koa had completed the task, she wiped her hands on a clean towel. “Okay then, let’s see about that fight. I know the rain’s already started, but if it’s not too bad…” She opened the back door to peer outside, watching how the light drizzle had become a moderate downpour. “Oof. I’m sorry, but I don’t think it’s gonna happen today.”

 

Despite his disappointment, Guzma understood. “Yeah, I feel ya. It got nasty real quick.”

 

“Y’all can still stay for dinner, though. It’s gonna be real good!”

 

“Hey, I don’t doubt ya. You sure there’ll be enough?”

 

“Oh yeah!” Koa laughed. “The recipe I have makes so much!”

 

Guzma stuck his head back through the doorway to holler at the grunts, who had taken to Koa’s Herdier, meeting its demand for belly rubs. “Ay! Y’all get in here and help the lady with dinner. You gotta work if you wanna eat!”

 

“Oh, it’s alright, I-”

 

“Nah, it’s the least we can do. What’s next? Put ‘em to work.”

 

“Well…” She passed a piece of paper to one of the grunts. “Here’s the recipe. You see the dry spices listed there? I need those measured out and mixed together in…” Koa reached for a small, blue ceramic bowl. “...in this. Be careful not to rub your face if you get pepper on your hands.”

 

“What can I do?” Another one of the young Team members asked.

 

“Measure out about a half-cup of flour for me.” She turned to Guzma next. “And you… You can peel shrimp for me.”

 

Guzma hadn’t expected to be enlisted himself, but he didn’t complain. Instead, he did as he was told, carefully lifting away the thin shrimp shells. He frowned as part of the inner meat tore off along with the tail. “Shit.”

 

“What happened?” Koa asked from her place at the stove, where she’d begun heating a thick layer of oil in a skillet. 

 

“I fucked this one up.”

 

She sidled up next to him, observing his work. Guzma was suddenly  _ very  _ aware of her hip pressing against his. The closeness was odd, considering how they’d regarded one another in the beginning. “Let me see. Have you ever peeled shrimp before?”

 

“Nah. It’s actually been a long time since I’ve had any.”

 

“Here, let me show you.” Koa took another intact piece from the bag resting in the bottom of the sink. She tore away the section with legs attached, leaving only the tail. “If you pinch it here, and just... _ carefully _ ...wiggle it…” The tail section slipped off with ease. “There. See?”

 

“Y-Yeah, I got you.”

 

An hour later the finely minced vegetables and fresh seafood bubbled away in a rich, buttery, brown sauce. Its spicy aroma hung heavy in the air; no one present knew how much longer they could wait before taking a spoonful directly from the pot. Koa served it over rice, passing a plate to everyone before leaning against the counter, her own dish in hand. She lifted her fork to her mouth, a broad smile of contentment crossing her face. Looking at the Team Skull members’ amazed faces, she couldn’t help being a bit smug. “Good, right?”

 

“So friggin’ good…”

 

\---

 

A loud clap of thunder made Koa jump, giving a little yelp and dropping the plate she’d just washed. It hit the tile floor with a crash, shattering into several jagged pieces. “Shit,” she mumbled, bending over to pick up the pieces.

 

“Hey, I got it.” Guzma knelt down. “You go and get a broom. I’ll make sure no one steps in this.”

 

“Thanks,” she whispered, mortified as she swept up the remaining bits of china.

 

“You good?” he asked her discreetly, somehow aware that something wasn’t quite right.

 

Koa looked shifty as she turned her gaze to the side. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

 

“Well, I guess we should be heading back now. Thanks for the food.”

 

“H-Hold on just a second.” Koa pulled back the curtain covering the kitchen window, cupping her hand around her eyes to peer into the darkness. “It’s pouring out there!”

 

“Yeah, it’ll suck,” Guzma admitted.

 

“No, I mean like, I don’t feel right about sending y’all out in that. It’s not safe.”

 

He waved her off. “We’ll be fine.”

 

“But...there could be a mudslide, or… Just…you should all stay here tonight.” The genuine worry on her face made Guzma reconsider.

 

“Well...if you’re sure… It won’t be too much trouble, right?”

 

“Not at all! I just don’t want any of you going out in such bad weather.”

 

As she began to think about the logistics of having unexpected guests for the night, Koa had to wonder what she had gotten herself into. Her center presently housed more young trainers than usual, so she didn’t have any spare bedrooms for Team Skull to use. What she did have, however, was a living room outfitted with a decent amount of furniture. Between the L-shaped couch, the love seat, and the oversized chair, everyone would have a comfortable place to curl up. Koa ducked into the hallway to dig through the linen closet for blankets and spare pillows, distributing them in the living room. Before she knew it, the grunts were sacked out on the couch, and Guzma stretched out on the love seat. Koa tossed him a pillow before settling down into the chair.

 

“You’re staying in here tonight?” he asked her, surprised.

 

“If you think I’m really gonna walk through that rain-”

 

Guzma held up his hands, laughing. “Fair enough.”

 

“Besides,” Koa smirked, “I gotta keep an eye on y’all, make sure you don’t get into too much trouble.”

 

Despite being on a couch, rather than at home in his bed, Guzma drifted easily into a dreamless sleep, utterly unaware of the passage of time. Most of the storm noises outside didn’t faze him in the slightest, but one particularly loud clap of thunder managed to rouse him from his rest, and he jolted awake, blinking and looking around the room, taking a moment to get his bearings. He had been sleeping so well, he had managed to forget where he was for tonight. Across the room, he could see Koa moving in her chair; apparently the thunder had woken her too. As quietly as she could, she stood up. Maybe she wanted a drink of water, Guzma theorized as he watched her pad off toward the kitchen. Strangely, he couldn’t hear the sink running, so that was out.

 

_ That’s fuckin’ weird…  _ His curiosity getting the better of him, he stood up and started off after her. He couldn’t imagine what Koa would be up to at… Guzma looked at the massive wall clock above the stairs… At three in the goddamn morning. She had been heading for the kitchen, but when he entered the room, she was nowhere to be seen. Guzma continued the search, checking all the adjacent rooms, and even poking his head back into the living area to see if she’d gone back to bed. However, Koa was nowhere to be seen. He scratched his head, walking back into the kitchen for lack of a better plan. Guzma cocked his head, noticing that the light inside the walk-in pantry was on; had Koa left it on by mistake? That didn’t seem like the kind of oversight she would make. Maybe...

 

Interest piqued, he reached for the door, opening it slowly. Guzma blinked at the sudden brightness, surprised by what he found when his eyes finally adjusted. Inside, Koa was seated on the floor, knees pulled up to her chest, hands over her ears. Her eyes were shut tight, but she still seemed to sense that she’d been discovered, looking up at him. She groaned, face turning deep red in humiliation. “I guess you’re gonna make fun of me now, huh?”

 

Guzma was confused. “Make fun of you? For what?”

 

Koa scoffed. “Isn’t it obvious? Big, tough master trainer can’t even handle a stupid thunderstorm. I bet you find this hilarious.” She crossed her arms over her knees, plopping her head down. “I must look pretty pathetic, huh?” So this was her one weakness. It came as a surprise to Guzma, but he didn’t quite feel the way Koa expected. Before, he might have gotten a good laugh out of it, but right now, he felt kind of bad for her. This was clearly a well-hidden secret, and now he had gone and stuck his nose where it didn’t belong. 

 

Guzma sighed. “I ain’t gonna make fun of you or nothin’. Because it ain’t anything to laugh about. Everybody’s got their stuff, so…” He shrugged, following her into the pantry. “Is it cool if I hang out in here with ya? We don’t have to talk about it or nothin’, but I figure you’ll feel better if you’re not in here by yourself.”

 

She didn’t raise her head as she nodded, but he could still see that her face remained flushed a deep pink as she gave the affirmative response. Guzma closed the pantry door, not wanting the light to catch the attention of anyone else, and he sat down behind Koa, his knees on either side of her. This kind of silence was strange for him, since he normally had so much to say, but he figured it was better than an awkward attempt at small talk. She looked so  _ small  _ right now; he’d never noticed the size difference between them before. Guzma was an absolute bear of a man, and even if Koa wasn’t all that petite, she still looked like a pixie in comparison. “Thanks for staying here with me,” she mumbled finally, still sounding mortified.

 

Noticing that she hadn’t brought her blanket or pillow in here, Guzma thought he might should do what he could to make her feel comfortable. Slowly, he took off his hoodie, draping it around her shoulders and putting the hood up over her head. To his surprise, she tugged it tighter around her, accepting his show of kindness.

 

Just when Koa thought that she couldn’t  _ possibly  _ feel more humiliated, Guzma would go and surprise her again, with gestures about which she didn’t know quite how to feel. She felt the heavy fabric surrounding her, and she knew immediately what it was. In her moment of weakness, she pulled it tight against her, inhaling the scent which was foreign and familiar at the same time. She could pick up hints of cigarette smoke, and...was that  _ weed _ ? Mostly, it just smelled warm- no tidal wave of Axew body spray like she would have guessed.

 

“Y’know,” Guzma whispered suddenly. “You can lean back...if you want to.” The implication here was that Koa would be leaning back  _ against him _ , putting the two of them physically closer than they ever had been, and very suddenly. Koa didn’t even know if she could call the two of them  _ friends _ , and yet, here he was essentially volunteering to  _ cuddle her _ . All the same, she found herself leaning back, too caught up in the heady emotions brought on by the storm to stop and consider whether this was appropriate. Maybe she was  _ just that desperate  _ for human contact. Of course, the kids visiting her center hugged her all the time,  _ especially  _ the homesick little ones, but that was different. Physicality freely given by a fellow adult was just comforting in a way that made her feel  _ safe _ , and that was exactly what Koa needed right now.

 

This concession by her surprised Guzma. He’d half expected her to scoff and tell him to not be ridiculous, but here she was, laying back against him. His heart jumped inside his chest; he couldn’t remember the last time he’d been this close with someone. Despite the strictly-platonic nature of the situation, there was something  _ so  _ intimate about this.  _ Fuck, I’m so tired that I’m startin’ to lose it.  _

 

Though each was privately mildly freaked, they  _ were  _ comfortable, sinking easily into unconsciousness. Guzma wasn’t quite sure of the time when he finally woke again, but he could tell that it was still dark, as evidenced by the strip of floor visible through the crack under the door. He didn’t know if the rain had continued, since it couldn’t be heard from here. Afraid that he might have disturbed Koa in his waking moments, he looked down, the sight almost knocking the wind out of him. In her sleep, she had somehow shifted so that her side, rather than her back, rested against him, her cheek against his chest. Wrapped in his jacket, eyes shut tight, utterly  _ content  _ in his arms, she looked, well…  _ Shit. Shit shit shit.  _ Koa looked... _ cute!  _ Heart thumping, Guzma could feel his face rapidly heating, and he prayed that she wouldn’t choose this moment to suddenly wake up, considering how her ear was pressed right against his chest. Oh, this was  _ weird _ . He’d been so focused on beating her, and now he was catchin’  _ feelings _ ?  _ This...this is bad.  _

 

After this unfortunately-timed revelation, Guzma couldn’t manage to catch any more sleep that night. He just kept finding himself looking down, only to quickly turn away again, all flustered and stupid. As the early morning rays of light began to crawl across the floor, Koa began to stir, and he dropped his head back as fast as he could, pretending to be asleep. He could feel her turn from side to side, making sense of her surroundings, and then he heard her mumble, “Oh, shit,” before carefully extracting herself from his grasp. As she stood, Guzma decided to “wake up,” looking at her. 

 

“Oh, hey. You sleep alright?” He gave her a lopsided grin.

 

“Uh, y-yeah.” She couldn’t meet his eyes. Her embarrassment continued, with the added discomfort of having been vulnerable with someone she didn’t  _ really  _ know all that well.

 

Guzma gave her a look of concern. “You good? After…”

 

Koa huffed. “I’m fine.” Even after everything that had transpired, she was still trying to play it cool. Guzma could see right through her, and what he saw was completely  _ adorable _ .

 


	8. A Nice Girl Like You

\---

Even though it had only been in operation for a few months now, having the resource center be completely empty struck Koa as strange. Yes, it had been like this for the first couple of days of the center being open before guests began to slowly trickle in, but she’d gotten so used to having at least a few young trainers here at any given time. Today, however, the place was totally vacant of anyone besides Koa and her pokemon, which truthfully did give her a good opportunity to deep clean the large house, and get caught up on some paperwork. It was a tuesday, even, so Guzma wouldn’t be stopping by again for a couple more days. To be honest, Koa felt a little bit grateful for this; she still felt strange about what had happened the night of the thunderstorm, and the fact that he now knew her deepest secret. Of course, he didn’t know  _ why  _ she had such a deep-seated fear, but it still seemed like such a personal thing. Koa had hidden this from  _ everyone _ , even her intimate partners over the years, and now  _ Guzma  _ of all people had managed to discover it. At least he hadn’t made fun of her, adding insult to injury. But...would that really have been worse? Having him be gentle with her, even... _ taking care of her _ ...it just felt so  _ weird.  _

 

In any case, she now had the night completely to herself for the first time in a  _ long  _ time. It had been even longer since she’d allowed herself to go out for the night and just have a good time. In the past, Koa had loved to go dancing, losing herself in the club’s thumping bass and pulsing lights, but all of her responsibilities over the past few years had made it difficult for her to find the time. She put her papers aside, her mind made up. There wasn’t much to do here in Po Town, but the party scene in Malie City was much more lively. Koa could get there in an hour’s time if she took the back roads, and her personal vehicle was equipped for that sort of rough-riding. She would simply have to be careful to not get too inebriated to drive home at the end of the night. Theoretically, Koa  _ could  _ take a car service, but she didn’t really want to spend the money, considering how far she’d be going. Besides, she was more interested in the dancing than the drinking anyway.

 

Most days, Koa preferred to dress practically, in a t-shirt and jeans or shorts. Tonight, however, she would get to bring out a little something that she hadn’t gotten to wear in a long time. She hoped it still fit. Her fingertips brushed over the silky fabric, the vivid pink-orange-purple color scheme of the floral print electric against her light brown skin. Koa shimmied out of her jeans, yanking her top over her head. Taking the cut of her dress into consideration, with its open back, she unfastened her sensible cotton bra and flung it aside, trading it for something hot pink and lacy, the kind of bra one wore with the understanding that it would be seen. Looking into the mirror, she bit her lip, hesitant. Was she really still young enough to be dressing like this? Maybe it just felt strange since it had been so long. In the end, Koa shrugged it off; who cared what she was and was not young enough for, anyway? She grabbed a pair of wedge sandals from her closet, the ones with the wooden platforms that made a hollow sound when she walked. Surely they would be killing her feet by the end of the night, but oh well. 

 

Taking one last glance at the mirror, she couldn’t help remembering the earlier parts of her childhood, when she had admired the beautiful young women going out on their own nighttime adventures, clad in vibrant colors and sky-high heels, flowers tucked into their hair. Koa had always envied their beauty and their freedom, wishing for the future when she too could venture out for an evening of fun. She always had wanted to grow up too fast. And then she hadn’t had any other option, given all of the responsibilities of an adult with none of the privileges. Of course, she had taken those responsibilities upon herself, but what choice did she have,  _ really _ ? In some ways, it had made her too serious, she knew, but she still tried to have fun, still tried to claim the youth that she’d wished for before. Those ladies, in the old days...they were so carefree. Koa’s life had ended up being one type of responsibility after another: looking after her siblings, then going off to become a pokemon trainer, and then pursuing not one, but  _ two  _ degrees in pokemon physiology and morphology, and now, her resource center. Maybe one night off was the  _ least  _ of what she deserved.

 

Koa inhaled sharply, shaking her head to chase away the thought of her fleeting youth, and focused on applying a rich, purpley shade of lipstick, pursing her lips and checking to make sure she hadn’t gotten it on her teeth. As she grabbed her bag, she stopped to think for a minute. She was traveling on her own this evening, to a city that was not her home, and going to a  _ dance club _ . With all of the noise, and all of the people, there were certain dangers, especially for a young woman. “You feel like going out tonight, Noctowl?” The nocturnal raptor spread its wings wide, giving a trilling hoot of excitement.  _ Yes!  _ Koa grabbed one of the red-and-white balls that sat vacant on her coffee table, pressing the button to open it, pulling the avian pokemon inside. She minimized it, tucking the ball safely inside her cross-body handbag. Finally ready, she stepped outside, locking the door behind her. The jeep roared to life as she turned the key in the ignition, the console lighting up as lighthearted chatter poured from the speakers playing some radio talk show. Koa quickly changed the station to an upbeat music channel. After all, this night was about having fun.  

 

\---

 

Ever since the night he and the grunts had unwittingly spent at the resource center, Guzma had found himself restless in every possible sense. He’d certainly felt  _ something  _ then, but he couldn’t quite figure out how to identify the feeling, or what it meant. That night, he had looked at Koa, and, on some level, found her cute. But, was it in an objective way, or was it his own opinion? And with that thought- that she was cute- had come a sort of warm, fluttery feeling unfamiliar to him. What the hell did  _ that  _ mean? Guzma didn’t really want to think about it too much, since the topic made him uneasy. On the other hand, he couldn’t  _ stop  _ thinking about it. He wanted to figure it out so that he could  _ stop _ thinking about it  _ all the time _ ...but would he like the answer when he found it? Guzma had an inkling of what the case might be, but he didn’t dare dwell on it for long. It was just too absurd, and it wouldn’t be good if it turned out to be true. He couldn’t even bring himself to  _ think  _ it...that he might  _ like _ …  _ Nah...nah nah nah nah nah. That’s crazy.  _ Surely there had to be a more sensible explanation.

 

In any case, he wanted to get as far away from this situation as possible, even for just one night. Guzma felt too restless just sitting around here, a hostage to his thoughts. He needed to go somewhere, do something, just to take his mind off things. To be specific, he needed to get out of Po Town for a short time. Mucking around town, he risked running into Koa, and he wasn’t quite ready to see her again. Of course Guzma would have to face her again come thursday, since it would be weird if he suddenly didn’t show this week, but he wanted to put that meeting off for as long as he could. Malie City wasn’t really all that far away, close enough for him to hurry back should something happen, and there was plenty to do, plenty of distractions. The city offered a certain level of anonymity; Guzma would readily let it swallow him whole, becoming just another guy on the street.

 

The new month had finally started, and with it had come a fresh new stipend from Aether. Lusamine had even been  _ so kind  _ as to spot Guzma a little extra in his personal allowance, a “courtesy” for the “inconvenience” he had suffered the previous month. Truthfully, she didn’t really care that she had taken fresh food out of the Grunts’ mouths; she just knew that losing Team Skull’s confidence in her would be bad for business. Guzma took the envelope from under his mattress, thumbing through the cash. It had been a long time since he’d had this much to his name. It would be more than enough to finance his little trip. He could eat wherever he wanted, drink as much as he wanted, even pay for a car service to drive his drunk ass to the theoretical hotel room that he could now afford. It would probably be more responsible to hold on to as much money as he could, saving it for when the Team really needed it, but Guzma never really had been all that great at managing his finances. He was more of a spender than a saver.

 

Grumbling to himself, he grabbed a wad of cash from the envelope, stuffing it into the wallet he rarely used. Guzma rolled off the bed, padding over the the closet, which held only a few clothing items that didn’t see much wear. Most of his clothing remained in the laundry basket until he decided to wear it, and was then deposited onto the floor, acting as a nest for random sleepy pokemon until it was gathered for washing. He slid the hangers from side to side, examining the few finer items he owned, taking a pair of pants- not sweats, but actual  _ pants  _ befitting a grown man- and looking at the tag for the size. They might be just a little bit tight, but they’d do the trick. Since he couldn’t very well walk around shirtless, or in one of the plain, white tank tops that he usually liked to wear, Guzma grabbed the black, short-sleeve button-up shirt right in front of him.  _ Good enough.  _ He disappeared into the bathroom, hoping that getting clean would help him feel marginally better. The car service would be here within the hour to pick him up, so he picked up the pace, quickly toweling himself, blow-drying his hair, and dabbing on a little bit of cheap cologne. He had no intention of trying to pick anyone up tonight, but a little confidence boost never hurt anyone.

 

\---

 

The pulsing bass pounded in Koa’s ears as she swayed her body to the beat, surrounded by people at the very heart of the dancefloor. She’d been thirsty for a while now, wanting to make her way to the bar for a glass of water, but she kept thinking to herself  _ just one more song!  _ Taking a night off had been a good idea, as it turned out; she was deliriously happy as she spun, her skirt floating as everything seemed to move in slow-motion. As the current song faded away, Koa couldn’t deny it any longer: she needed to rehydrate. Slowly she waded through the crowd, trying not to shove anyone out of the way, eventually making her way to the bar, its lucite counter lit from underneath by fluorescent rope lights that glowed against her skin. The bartender appeared before her, his voice just barely audible over the roar of the crowd and the music. “What’ll it be?”

 

“Can I just get a glass of water, please?”

 

“Of course.” Within seconds a tall glass of water was placed before her, and she grabbed it, gulping down the refreshing beverage.

 

The shifty-looking man sitting on the stool next to Koa flashed a smarmy grin. “Someone’s thirsty.”

 

Having finished the last of his drink, Guzma looked up, hoping to wave down the bartender. He almost choked on the ice cube he was chewing as he glanced down toward the other end of the bar, seeing a familiar set of cerulean eyes glowing under the neon lights.  _ Of all the fucking clubs in this city…  _ Of course, it  _ had  _ been Guzma’s choice to come to a club when he easily could have chosen any one of the nearby bars. He had just thought that this might be better for his current situation, letting the thumping music drown out his irritating thoughts. At least this was a big building, and Koa appeared to just be getting a quick drink before heading back to the center of the action, more interested in dancing than in alcohol.  _ She’s a good girl.  _ If she ended up noticing that he was here too, hopefully she wouldn’t feel inclined to say anything. She could dance, and Guzma could drink, and neither of them had to interact with the other at all. Once she disappeared into the crowd, it would be like she wasn’t even here.

 

As she returned to the edge of the dance floor, Koa quickly realized that she’d been followed. That guy, who’d made that comment while she was at the bar, had taken it upon himself to “escort” her there, assigning himself the role of her dance partner. Koa, however, had no interest in dancing with anyone. She turned on her heel and walked away, hoping that he would get the message. No such luck; the man followed her every move. Either he was completely oblivious to other people’s body language, or he understood, but just didn’t care about the other person’s choices. “I don’t want to dance with you,” she finally told him, loudly, hoping that even if this fellow ignored her wishes, someone else would hear her, understand the situation, and step in. The words seemed to sink in, and he disappeared for a few blissful minutes. A little shaken, Koa resumed her dancing, trying to get back to that joyful place she’d occupied before. It wasn’t long before she was joined again by that same smarmy individual, grinning widely as if to say “aren’t you happy to see me?” Clearly, he thought Koa had the short-term memory of a Magikarp, and that if he simply went away for a few minutes before trying again, he might get a different reaction.  _ You’ve got to be kidding me.  _

 

Even though Guzma had wanted to forget that Koa was here, his eyes still followed her, worried that she would spot him. Besides, something had begun to concern him; after she left the bar area, a man had followed her, seeming the type of guy who didn’t take no for an answer. Koa appeared annoyed by him, of course, trying to get away, but he kept following her. Guzma gripped his glass a little tighter. He didn’t like this creep buggin’ her, but he didn’t really know if it was his place to intervene. Surely the fucker would get the message eventually, that she didn’t want anything to do with him. If things went  _ too  _ far, Guzma would step in, but for now, he thought it best to keep to himself.  _ Oh...oh no.  _ The man eased up behind Koa as she danced, putting his hands on her hips and pulling her back against him.  _ Oh  _ HELL  _ no!  _ She shoved him away quickly, looking angry.  _ That fucker! He’s askin’ for a beat-down!  _

 

“What the  _ hell  _ is wrong with you?!” Koa demanded, shoving her harasser away.

 

“Aw, come on now, baby. I’m just trying to have a good time. Besides, it’s a  _ compliment _ !” Everything about this man was disgusting- his looks, his words, his entitled attitude…

 

“I want you to leave me alone.”

 

“Now, now, there’s no need to be rude…” The slimy tone of his voice made Koa’s skin crawl.

 

She sneered. “I think I’ve been quite patient with you up until now, but if it’s rude you want.” She leaned in close to shout right in the man’s face. “FUCK. OFF.”

 

“Alright, fine. If you wanna be a rude little bitch, then be a rude little bitch, but I won’t apologize for what happens as a result!” He produced a pokeball from his back pocket, hurling it forward to reveal an aggressive, overly-muscled Machamp. Koa had to wonder if its trainer had used certain candies banned by the Pokemon League in order to bulk it up.

 

Koa dove her hand into her bag to retrieve her own fighter, but before she could send her pokemon out to fight, she could feel another presence behind her. She looked back, almost choking on her own spit when she saw Guzma there. Out of all the bars and clubs in Alola, they’d somehow managed to wind up in the same one. Either this was an insane coincidence, or he had followed her here, but the latter didn’t really seem all that likely. If he had followed her, would he really be willing to make his presence known, even in a situation like this? Not likely. All the same, it shocked her to see him here, even if it was just coincidental. Part of her felt relieved, having someone to back her up and make sure this asshole didn’t take things too far. Of course, he  _ had  _ already taken things too far, but with Guzma on her side, she could make sure things didn’t get any worse. “You heard the lady, get the fuck on outta here.”

 

Their opponent stood his ground even as he was faced with both Noctowl  _ and  _ Golisopod, who seemed very confused by the fact that they were fighting a common enemy, and not one another. It quickly became apparent that Koa’s previous theory had been correct, that Machamp’s trainer had put more effort into bulking it up to make it  _ look  _ big and intimidating, than in actually training it to fight. It couldn’t seem to land a single hit on either of its opponents, nor could it dodge attacks effectively. Koa had to wonder how often this attempted show of power  _ actually  _ worked. It couldn’t be all that often, since it was such a thin facade of toxic masculinity, but if it failed more than it succeeded, why would this man continue to use such a tactic. Of course, he wasn’t all that intelligent, was he? Any trainer worth his salt wouldn’t put his pokemon in a situation where it would be knocked out cold within minutes, as was the situation here. He retrieved his fighter, skulking away and muttering something under his breath. Koa breathed a sigh of relief as she watched him go.

 

“Ay, you good, right?” Guzma actually sounded concerned.

 

“Yeah,” she smiled. “I’m fine now. Thanks for your help.”

 

“Ah-” Guzma clasped his hand to the back of his neck. “It ain’t nothin’.”

 

“Hey…” Koa chewed her lip for a moment, looking as though she were thinking something over. “Can I buy you a drink?”

 

\---

 

“Aight, so tell me: what’s a nice girl like you doin’ in a place like this?”

 

“Who said I was a nice girl?” Koa smirked, taking another sip of her drink. They had found a nice spot out on the patio to cool off in the evening breeze, where the music wasn’t quite so loud.

 

“Damn, aight. Touche.”

 

“Refills on these drinks?” a cocktail waitress asked, pausing by their table.

 

“Yeah, I’ll have another, and…” Guzma paused, waiting for Koa to answer for herself.

 

“Not just yet, thanks.” The waitress nodded, heading back toward the bar. “I have to be able to drive back later, so I need to take it kind of easy.

 

Guzma had the urge to tell her that she was welcome to crash in his hotel room, but he realized that it might come across differently than he intended. “Yeah, I got you.” A flash of color caught his attention out of the corner of his eye, and he reached over to pluck a golden-orange hibiscus bloom off a nearby bush, it’s center stained bright carmine. Guzma leaned forward to tuck it behind Koa’s ear, vibrant against her dark hair. “It matches ya dress!” he explained, grinning broadly.

 

Koa didn’t quite know what to say to that.

 

However, that was the least of her worries right now. Neither she, nor Guzma realized that from across the street, they were being watched.

 


	9. Secrets and Suspicions

Plumeria stared at the blinking lights of her internet router, unable to make herself focus on the computer monitor. Of course, she’d been distracted all day now, consumed with the icky sort of suspicious feeling one gets when catching a loved one in a compromising situation. The problem was, she didn’t quite know what to make of it. She knew what it  _ looked  _ like, but it just seemed so out-of-character for Guzma… Besides, Plumeria knew so little about the context of the situation. She was generally a logical sort of person, not the type to jump to conclusions. Still...it didn’t look good. Would she be irrational to worry about the nature of what had happened, or would she be naive to wave it off as a silly misunderstanding? Plumeria folded her arms across her desk, laying her head down on top of them. As it seemed, she wouldn’t be able to make a clear judgment until she knew more about what had happened that night.

 

When Guzma had told her that he’d be going out for the night, and that he’d be back the next day, Plumeria hadn’t thought too much of it. He  _ had  _ been in somewhat of a haze recently, and she’d assumed he just needed some time to clear his head. What she  _ didn’t  _ anticipate was an overly-curious grunt stowing away to Malie City, only to report back that he’d seen Guzma getting friendly with that woman who had started that new Resource Center here in town.  _ What was her name again? Koa?  _ Apparently, they’d been having drinks, and laughing, and generally acting like... _ friends _ . Were they friends? The way the grunt had described the Boss taking a flower off a bush, tucking it into Koa’s hair, seemed to indicate that it was even worse than that.  _ Ugh…  _ Plumeria felt sick. Of course, what  _ she  _ had with Guzma was a casual sort of thing, and Plumeria liked it that way, but… It wasn’t as though she was  _ jealous _ , of course! The whole thing just felt...icky.

 

The whole thing had hit her like a ton of bricks, to be honest. She knew that he had been going over there frequently to challenge Koa, but had had no clue that they were on  _ friendly  _ terms. When the grunt had come to her with this, Plumeria had been at a complete loss for words, and now, myriad questions hounded her: What exactly was the nature of Guzma’s relationship with Koa? Were they friends? Were they more than that? Were they sleeping together? If so, was it a casual thing? Or did he have real feelings for her? Plumeria shook her head, realizing that she was getting  _ way  _ ahead of herself. All she knew was they they’d seen each other in Malie City, and that they’d had drinks together. That was it. As surprising as it all was, she still knew almost nothing about what had actually happened.

 

If...and that was a big “if,” but  _ if _ Guzma was having any kind of relationship with this woman, even of a strictly platonic sort, it might be bad news for the team. As it was, Team Skull was already in kind of a shaky financial situation. Less and less tourism to Po Town over the years had left them struggling to make ends meet, never mind the amount that went to Aether every month. Because of Koa’s resource center, business had been even worse as of late; her center provided an alternative to the Skull-controlled Pokemon Center. If things got desperate, the best option might be for the Team to take drastic action against her. However, if she and Guzma were friendly, he might be more hesitant to do what needed to be done for the good of his subordinates. And if  _ Aether  _ found out how she was affecting their cash flow, things might get even worse than that. Would Guzma put the whole squad in jeopardy in order to protect her?

 

Plumeria knew that she was being paranoid, but...she needed to consider these things. If she was wrong, it would be a great relief, but if she was right...well...at least she wouldn’t be blindsided. The gears in her head had started turning now, mind racing with possibilities. Continuing further down the road...if Guzma and Koa were  _ more  _ than friends, her thriving business and steady income could provide him with more security than being Team Skull’s boss. Even without this complication, Plumeria sometimes wondered if this would be a lifelong career for any of them. Koa...represented a real future, where he wouldn’t have to scrape by every month, none of them ever having enough. What if one day Guzma decided that he wanted more than this, that he wanted to be a better person? It wouldn’t be a hard choice to make.

 

She sighed loudly, shaking her head, knowing that she was letting her worries run away with her. Quite honestly, Plumeria didn’t know anything about the situation, and making any kind of judgment now, jumping to conclusions and making an ill-informed decision, would just be too rash. Furthermore, making any kind of out-of-the-blue accusations would only make her seem jealous and irrational, and no one would take anything she said seriously, even if she was right. Plumeria needed more information before she could decide what to do next. But...how could she  _ get  _ that information? The grunt who had seen what happened in Malie City had already told her everything he knew, and she certainly couldn’t ask  _ Guzma  _ without looking like an insane person. Sure, she could discreetly monitor him for a while and see how he interacted with Koa, but Plumeria worried that that would take too long. She needed to know  _ now _ , so she could take action before anything went horribly wrong. 

 

Even Koa herself was quite the enigma. She had moved here, and started up her resource center, but other than that, Plumeria had very little information to go on. Ostensibly, Koa wasn’t married, and she didn’t have a boyfriend; no one had ever seen any kind of man close to her age at the center...other than Guzma, anyway. She was a flying-type specialist- Guzma had told Plumeria that much, and she was a strong competitor. Anything else...was gossip from around town. Someone had mentioned once that Koa was from here originally, but she had lived with family in Kalos for a long time. Others said that she’d studied in Kanto, doing graduate research on the legendary birds. There was also nasty rumor of a brief affair with a certain Zapdos specialist, but who could attest to the validity of something like that? In the end, if Plumeria wanted to know how Koa felt about Guzma, or what their relationship was like, she was going to get the information straight from the horse’s mouth. Only one of the people involved could tell her what was going on, and Koa was really her only option, even if it was a little ridiculous to expect Koa to share potentially personal information with someone she’d never met before.

 

In the corner of the room, Salazzle dozed contentedly under a heat lamp. Plumeria rose from her chair, going over and gently stroking the reptile’s head to wake it. “Let’s go run a quick errand,” she whispered as Salazzle stretched, swaying its thick tail back and forth. Normally, Plumeria liked to let the pokemon rest, but she wanted to have at least one of her partners to accompany her to Koa’s place, not knowing what to expect once she got there. Certainly, Koa had to be a reasonable sort of person, responsible enough to pursue graduate studies and then start her own business. Plumeria didn’t anticipate any kind of a physical altercation, but Koa  _ probably  _ wouldn’t be too thrilled about a stranger- a member of Team Skull, no less- showing up at her door and demanding information. The walk over to the resource center only served to agitate her nerves further. This confrontation made Plumeria slightly nervous, but what really bothered her was not knowing what potentially-unpleasant information she might glean from it. If Guzma couldn’t be trusted anymore, she would know soon.

 

\---

 

When the resource center doorbell rang, and Herdier took off barking, Koa expected the normal sort of guest- a young trainer looking for a hot meal, or a place to stay for the night. What she didn’t expect was a grown woman, dressed in typical Team Skull attire, arms crossed as she eyed Koa curiously. Maybe Guzma’s inability to beat her thus far had proved unsatisfactory, and this woman had elected to take over from here. For a split-second, Koa almost felt disappointed at the prospect, but she quickly brushed the feeling aside. Sure, her rapport with Guzma had become much more amicable, but...they weren’t... _ friends _ , right? Or were they? Maybe…? Either way, it didn’t have anything to do with the situation at hand. Her guest seemed wary as she eyed Koa, not yet saying anything; it made her feel just vaguely uneasy, not sure what to expect from this encounter. In some small way, she almost felt as though she was in trouble.

 

“Can I help you?” she asked finally, trying to keep her voice upbeat and friendly.

 

The pink-haired woman flicked her eyes up and down, skeptical of her. “You’re Koa, right?”

 

“That’s right,” Koa responded, swallowing hard. “And you are…?”

 

“My name is Plumeria. I’m the administrator for Team Skull.”

 

“Is there something I can do for you, Plumeria?”

 

“Yeah, here’s the thing… I know that Guzma’s been coming over here to battle you every week. Recently, some things have...come to light that make me question what your relationship is with him.”

 

“My... _ relationship _ with him?” Koa couldn’t exactly say that she didn’t know what Plumeria was talking about. Anyone observing the two of them could see that they weren’t exactly antagonistic. But when Koa thought of him, did she really think of him as “my friend Guzma?” He was more like a friendly acquaintance/nuisance. 

 

“I mean, are you friends? Are you…?” Plumeria shrugged, raising a suspicious eyebrow.

 

Obviously, Plumeria was suspicious of Koa, which was understandable, considering the optics. “I mean, I honestly hadn’t really thought about it too much. He comes over here every week to challenge me, but it’s not like we hang out or anything. Like...we’re  _ nice  _ to each other, but I don’t know if I would say that we’re  _ friends _ …”

 

“Do you think Guzma would say the same thing?”

 

Koa froze then, not entirely sure what she should say next.  _ Would  _ he give the same answer? There had certainly been moments between them that pushed the boundary into true platonic intimacy, but...those had been coincidental...right? Was she getting too close to someone that she really should consider an enemy? Nothing she had done thus far had ever seemed wrong in the moment…

 

_ “You know...you can lean back...if you want to…” _

 

_ “Yeah, I got you…” _

 

The sensory memories hit Koa like a truck, the vague sharpness of tobacco, lingering on well-worn cotton...a whiff of cheap cologne and a bright orange bloom. She could feel the back of her neck growing hot, but she waved it off.

 

“Yeah, he would probably say the same.”

 

Plumeria raised an eyebrow, unconvinced.

 

What was all of this about, anyway, Koa wondered. Was...Plumeria worried that she might be some kind of a  _ threat _ to Team Skull? Maybe...she thought if Koa and Guzma got too friendly...he might want to leave the Team. That didn’t seem all too likely. For that to happen, Guzma would have to be more fond of her than he was of his gang, and Koa wasn’t nearly arrogant enough to see that as likely. And what was all of this to Plumeria, anyway? Even if Koa  _ was  _ friends with Guzma, what did that have to do with her?!  _ “Are you friends? Are you…?”  _

 

_ Oh.  _

 

Did...did Plumeria think that the two of them had a  _ romantic  _ relationship? Koa almost had to laugh, though she contained herself. But still, what did that have to do with… _ OH.  _ Maybe Plumeria wasn’t as worried about Guzma leaving Team Skull as she was worried about him leaving  _ her _ . “Look...you don’t have to worry. We’re not close at  _ all _ .”

 

“Then what were you doing together at a club in Malie City last night?!” Plumeria snapped.

 

Koa went rigid, taken aback. She hadn’t realized that anyone knew about that. Of course, it had been another weird coincidence, but it definitely wouldn’t look that way to anyone else. 

 

“Don’t even bother denying it. One of the grunts saw everything.”

 

Koa knew that there hadn’t been all that much to see, but when described to a third party, it would  _ appear _ that there was much more to it. “It’s not what it looks like.”

 

“So you  _ know  _ what it looks like.”

 

“It was a coincidence, I  _ swear _ .”

 

“Some coincidence!” Plumeria was clearly very upset about what she had heard, only confirming Koa’s theory that the other woman was  _ jealous  _ of this theoretical relationship between her and Guzma- a theoretical relationship  _ so ridiculous _ that it almost made Koa roll her eyes.

 

“It would probably be best if you stayed away from him from now on.” Plumeria folded her arms across her chest, staring Koa dead in the eye.

 

Koa paused a minute, turning Plumeria’s suggestion over in her brain. The interactions she’d had with Guzma...they weren’t illegal, or immoral in any way...who did Plumeria think she was telling Koa how to behave?! “You really think you can just come to my house and tell me what I can and cannot do?”

 

“It’s just my recommendation,” Plumeria shrugged. “You can choose to follow the advice, or not. It’s your choice. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

 

_ Are you... _ threatening  _ me?  _ “I am a grown-ass woman and I will do as I like.” Koa stepped forward, rolling her shoulders back to make herself appear more intimidating. Getting in Plumeria’s face probably wasn’t the best decision, but it annoyed her that Plumeria thought she could just tell her what to do, and Koa would blindly obey. “Guzma isn’t some commodity that you can just hoard for yourself. If he wants to come here, and talk to me, that’s his right. I’m not gonna be on some petty bullshit like ‘oh, Plumeria says I can’t talk to you.’”

 

_ Tch.  _ Plumeria sneered, irritated by this response. Koa had gotten far too defensive for someone who didn’t have anything to hide. Perhaps she’d been right to be suspicious of the woman. Furthermore, she didn’t like the way Koa had  _ stood up  _ for Guzma, as if they had a positive relationship, platonic or otherwise. If she had been antagonistic, or even neutral toward him, Koa would definitely have brushed it off as a petty issue within Team Skull. No...she was too close for comfort.  _ “...some commodity that you can hoard for yourself…”  _ Was Plumeria tripping, or did such a statement read as jealousy? It certainly seemed as though Koa wanted to maintain whatever kind of relationship she currently had with Guzma, which set Plumeria on edge. Sure, it was remotely possible that Koa was sweet on the Boss, and he didn’t feel the same way, but...it still wasn’t something Plumeria could just put out of her head. She sighed, closing her eyes. “Just...try to consider how your actions might impact other people.” Ignoring the confused look on Koa’s face, she turned on the ball of her foot and headed for home, decidedly more worried than before.

 

Halfway home, Plumeria stopped in her tracks, breath catching in her throat as she had a sudden realization. It wasn’t something she’d thought much of before, but now, connecting it to her own working timeline, and what had been happening, it seemed like a major piece of the puzzle. She and Guzma hadn’t...been intimate...since the night he and the grunts got caught out in the rain, and had ultimately needed to crash at the resource center. What had happened that night? Of course, it had been less than a week, but… Was Plumeria being paranoid again? Additionally, Koa had been so secretive, and acted absolutely  _ horrified  _ when Plumeria told her that she knew about the previous night in Malie City, making excuses and trying desperately to brush the whole thing off. No, Plumeria was right to be skeptical. Something was definitely going on, and whether anyone intended any harm or not was irrelevant.  _ After all, the road to hell is paved with good intentions…  _

 

All this time, Plumeria had been naive enough to believe that Guzma was simply going to Koa time and time again in hopes of beating her. That couldn’t  _ really  _ be the case. He’d seemed so distracted with it, too blinded by whatever relationship he had with Koa to really fulfill his role within the Team. It wasn’t about winning anymore. It wasn’t about his pride. It was about her. Did...did Guzma really care more about her than about the grunts? About Plumeria? Could it really be said that he still had Team Skull’s best interests at heart? Plumeria felt a deep ache in her chest. The grunts deserved better than this. The  _ whole team _ deserved better. The worst part was, she could no longer say that she trusted Guzma completely. 

 

_ Maybe...it would be best for us to take some time apart. _


	10. Coup D'etat

It didn’t take Plumeria very long to decide what to do. With all of the evidence and testimony presented to her, it had become clear that she couldn’t trust Guzma any longer. As much as she still cared about him as a friend, his actions left her feeling betrayed, and she knew that keeping him around wasn’t in the Team’s best interest. Plumeria would have to ask him to leave for a while, until he could get his priorities in order. Considering everything, it was possible that the separation might be permanent, but if Guzma really cared  _ so little  _ about Team Skull, then it would be for the best. In the meantime, she would have to take on his responsibilities as Boss, and, unfortunately, explain this unpleasant situation to the grunts. Plumeria didn’t like the fact that they would probably feel hurt by this, but it was still better than keeping a traitor around. Guzma likely wouldn’t take kindly to all of this, being removed from his position and asked to leave Shady House, but he wouldn’t really have a choice.

 

Knowing that he outranked her, Plumeria had gotten clearance from Aether, going to Lusamine directly about what was going on. Of course, Plumeria had made sure to leave out some details; as much as she disliked Koa, she didn’t want to put her in danger, not knowing how far Aether would go in order to protect their interests. Lusamine had been surprised by the news, recalling how eager Guzma had been in the past to please her, and how quickly he had grown attached to Team Skull. It had been the first place he’d ever felt  _ wanted _ , the only place that he’d ever felt truly at home. However, she still agreed with Plumeria that he wasn’t fulfilling his role within the Team as effectively as possible. If Guzma refused to leave when asked, she would be willing to have him forcibly removed from the property by Aether security. The thought of it set Plumeria on edge, and she hoped that it wouldn’t come to that. The guards in question could be ruthless, and she didn’t want Guzma to get hurt. Hopefully the threat itself would be enough to get him to leave peacefully.

 

Guzma had retired to his own bedroom as soon as he returned from Malie City the day before, and Plumeria hadn’t seen him since. She could only imagine what he had gotten up to that would tire him out so much. Best case scenario, he’d drunk too much and found himself severely hungover. Worst case scenario, he’d been up all night with a certain someone. He finally emerged on thursday afternoon, looking a little worse for wear and mumbling something about needing to go and battle. Plumeria’s lip curled.  _ Is that really  _ all  _ you think about?  _ Once again he’d be running off to the resource center to see Koa, like it was the highlight of his week. It probably  _ was  _ the highlight of his week, if the current situation was any indication. Still, she felt a pit in her stomach as she dreaded the conversation they would have to have now. It wouldn’t be very pleasant for either of them.

 

“Hey.” Plumeria stepped out into the hallway to get Guzma’s attention, crossing her arms. 

 

“Oh, hey. What’s up?” he asked her, not really noticing the seriousness in her voice. 

 

“We need to talk.”

 

“Okay…” Guzma could tell that something was up. Plumes never really was a playful sort of person, but she seemed more severe than usual today. Had something happened while he’d been away overnight? “Is everything okay?”

 

Plumeria shifted her gaze to the side. “Honestly? No, not really. We need to talk about what happened in Malie City.”

 

Guzma’s heart jumped into his throat. How did she know  _ anything  _ about what he had experienced that night? Did she know that he’d seen Koa there? Of course she did. Otherwise Plumeria wouldn’t have any reason to bring it up. “What about Malie City?” he asked, playing dumb.

 

Almost looking... _ sad _ , Plumeria’s voice softened. “Look, I know that you saw Koa while you were in the city. One of the grunts saw you there.”

 

That?! That had been a crazy coincidence! Guzma had  _ never  _ planned to see her there! In fact, he’d initially gone there to try and get  _ away _ from her. “Nah, Plumes, you don’t understand-”

 

“And the two of you looked pretty friendly, having drinks and laughing…”

 

“Hey, just because we’re  _ nice _ to each other-”

 

“And you’re over there  _ every single week _ ! In the beginning, I could believe that you really were just going over there to challenge her, but...I have to know: what exactly is the nature of your relationship with her?” Plumeria genuinely looked worried, and she wasn’t exactly wrong to be.

 

Guzma clenched his jaw. Of course he and Koa were friendly toward one another; that much was obvious to everyone around them.  _ “What exactly is the nature of your relationship?”  _ Did Plumeria think...that he and Koa were... _ involved _ ? Did she think that they were  _ fucking _ ? Guzma couldn’t deny that he found Koa attractive, but finding a pretty girl pretty wasn’t wrong in and of itself. Then again...he also couldn’t deny that he’d lain in his hotel room after that night at the club, drunken thoughts swirling around in his mind, on some level wishing that he’d invited Koa back to his room. He couldn’t deny that he wanted to mark that pretty tan skin with little red bruises, right at the junction of her neck and shoulders. He couldn’t deny that he wanted her to look up at him, lips swollen, sweat beading up on her face and body from exertion, and grab him by the back of the neck, bringing him back in as he pressed her into the mattress. Guzma couldn’t deny that his hand had started to wander south, even if he’d stopped himself in the end.

 

Of course, none of that would do any good putting Plumeria’s mind at ease. “Nah, you’ve got it all wrong. It’s not like that at all. You ask me what my relationship is with that girl, but there  _ is  _ no relationship. When I ran into her in Malie City, it was a coincidence! I didn’t know she was gonna be there! I only ended up talking to her because some dude was bothering her, and I stepped in! She bought me a drink to say thank you, but that was it! We’re not all buddy-buddy or nothin’!”

 

“Good, because when I asked her about it-”

 

“You went and talked to  _ her _ ?!” Guzma could hear himself raising his voice. It probably wasn’t good to let the tension in this conversation escalate, but he couldn’t believe that Plumeria had done that.

 

“-she said the same thing. She said that the two of you weren’t friends.”

 

Guzma’s face fell. It was easy enough to tell himself that he and Koa weren’t really friends, but to hear it from her… Something about it hurt, made him feel... _ rejected _ . 

 

Plumeria’s lip curled. “The look on your face tells me everything I need to know.”

 

“What...are you talking about?” 

 

“Honestly, I don’t know if I can trust you anymore. All of this...makes me wonder just how loyal you are to Team Skull.”

 

“Plumes...how could you  _ ever  _ question that?” Guzma’s eyes widened, searching her face.

 

She looked at him as if it couldn’t be more obvious. “Lately, your mind’s been somewhere else. In the past, you were much more focused on being a  _ leader  _ for this team, on expanding our territory and increasing power and profit. Now...I don’t know  _ where  _ your mind’s at, G. You’re not the same Boss you were before Koa came to town.”

 

“Hey…” Guzma knew his voice sounded desperate. “I’m still me. I’m still the same guy you’ve always known. This team is my  _ family _ . You know that… You can’t just give up on me like that.”

 

Plumeria cast her gaze aside, unable to look him in the eye.

 

“So what if I go over there to battle her every once in a while? So what if we’re civil toward each other? Seeing her in Malie City...I had no idea that that would happen! I’m still here! I’m still with the team! You can trust me! Plumeria, please!” He shook his head, at a loss for words. After everything they’d all been through together, how could she doubt his commitment to everyone? This whole Koa thing had hit Plumeria hard, even if she  _ was  _ misinterpreting the events.  _ Was  _ she misinterpreting them…? 

 

Of course. Guzma would never abandon the Team. He’d never betray them! But what if it came down to Team Skull or Aether wanting to  _ hurt _ Koa, or her business. Could he really stand by and let they happen? To his own dismay, he couldn’t truly answer that question

 

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I really  _ can  _ trust you.”

 

Guzma threw his hands up in desperation. “Great, so where in the hell does that leave us? What do you want me to do?”

 

“I think…” Plumeria chewed her lip pensively. “I think you need to take some time away, to figure things out.”

 

“To figure  _ what  _ out?”

 

“You’ve gotta get your  _ mind  _ right, get your priorities in order.”

 

“Well where do you expect me to go?!” Since leaving his dysfunctional family as a mere teenager, this was the only home that Guzma had known.

 

“I don’t know, but I think it’s best if you go away for a while.”

 

“How long is ‘a while?’”

 

Plumeria sighed, exasperated. “I don’t know, Guzma! As long as it takes for you to prove that you can be a leader again.”

 

“So you’re sayin’ I’m not the leader anymore.”

 

“As of right now, you are no longer the boss of Team Skull. Yes, that’s what I’m saying.”

 

Guzma scoffed. “You don’t have the authority to do that. You can’t just kick me to the curb like that! I’m still the Boss!”

 

“No...you’re not. I’m sorry it had to come to this.”

 

“It didn’t though! If you was all worked up n’ shit you could have  _ talked  _ to me about it! Things didn’t  _ have  _ to escalate to this point!”

 

“I didn’t know what was going on until now!” Plumeria fired back.

 

“I told you-” Guzma ran his hands through his hair, frustrated. “-there  _ is  _ nothing going on!”

 

“Then why do you spend so much time in your own world lately? I feel like we hardly see you even when you’re here! As much as you want to deny it, you’re  _ not  _ the same Boss you used to be!”

 

“I  _ am  _ still the Boss though!” Guzma folded his arms, puffing out his chest. “You can’t make me leave. You can’t throw me out!”

 

Plumeria sighed, upset that it had come to this. “Actually, I can. I talked to Lusamine, and...she agrees with me. You can either leave on your own, or I can call Aether and have them remove you. I don’t want to have to do that.”

 

“You got  _ Aether  _ wrapped up in all this?!” Guzma’s voice echoed off the walls. “Shit, Plumes, what the hell did you tell them?”

 

“I told them that you had some kind of involvement with a  _ certain someone  _ outside the team, and it was affecting your ability to fulfill your role as the Boss. I had to call your loyalties into question.”

 

Guzma’s stomach dropped. All this time, he had hoped to keep Lusamine from finding out about Koa, because he feared what the Aether leader would do if she knew that an outsider was threatening Team Skull’s revenue streams. If Lusamine knew about her, about her resource center...was Koa in danger now? He knew that his face held a look of panic, but he couldn’t help it. As much as the resource center made things hard for the Team, he’d come to care for its owner on some level, and he didn’t want her to get hurt. “Lusamine...knows about Koa?”

 

Plumeria scoffed, annoyed that even at a time like this, Guzma’s head was still with  _ her _ . “I didn’t get  _ that _ specific, so don’t worry.” Things were clearly worse than she’d thought. When he’d given her that panicked look, she’d assumed that he feared retaliation from Aether against  _ himself _ , but no, once again, it was all about Koa. Plumeria had been right to nip this in the bud. A lovesick Boss was a useless Boss. “Your precious girlfriend is safe and sound.” 

 

_ Wait...is all of this...about Koa?  _ When Plumeria had brought up Koa before, Guzma had just assumed that she was worried that he wasn’t prioritizing the Team. But… Was Plumes... _ jealous _ ? The relationship that the two of them had was always a casual sort of thing, and she’d always said she preferred it that way. The way she was talking now...made it seem like a personal issue. Now,  _ that  _ wasn’t a good reason to be ousting him from the Team. “Wait...are you… Are you gettin’  _ jealous  _ of Koa?”

 

This choice of words had Plumeria unimpressed. “Are you kidding me right now? You think I  _ care  _ about you liking girls? You  _ really  _ think  _ that’s  _ what this is about? How short-sighted can you be?! This is about a serious conflict of interest! How can you not see that?!”

 

“I mean...you keep bringing her up…”

 

“Because  _ she is  _ the conflict of interest! You spending time with her doesn’t help us! Have you forgotten that she is supposed to be our  _ enemy _ ?! That you were ready to  _ crush  _ her when she first rolled into town? You’re so  _ blinded  _ that you can’t even see how this affects all of us!” Plumeria could feel herself tearing up in frustration, but she didn’t care. What had happened to the Boss they had once known? All of this just made it more obvious that right now, Guzma’s head wasn’t screwed on right.

 

“You should go…” she said finally.

 

For the first time since this conversation had begun, Guzma looked hurt. “Plumes,  _ please _ .” 

 

Had Plumeria been a softer person, she might have relented, given him one last shot to get his act together. However, in reality, she was an emotionally-strong sort of person, who did what she believed was right even when it wasn’t easy. “You can take some time to get your things together.”

 

It was clear that Plumeria wouldn’t budge, that she really had decided once and for all that Guzma was no longer welcome at the Team Skull residence. Shaken, he stumbled toward his bedroom, head spinning. He grabbed a large backpack, absently stuffing clothes into it. Where would he go? Guzma had  _ some  _ money, but not enough to rent anything long term. Hell, it wouldn’t even cover a week’s stay in a hotel. Would he have to look for a job? That would prove challenging considering  _ this  _ was the only sort of “employment” he’d ever had. He glanced around the room helplessly; Guzma could only take so much with him, quite literally leaving with only his pokemon and the clothes on his back.

 

Finally he made his way back toward the front of the house, all of this still feeling unreal. Plumeria waited there, ready to see him out. “One last thing…” he muttered, looking her way. “Who’s gonna be the Boss while I’m gone?”

 

Plumeria shifted uncomfortably, not having expected this question. “Well...I will. In the interim.”

 

“ _ You _ ?!” Even though Guzma knew that she would never go behind his back to try and take his place, it still stung. Plumeria had always been such a loyal friend to him all this time, and even though he knew she was just doing what she thought was best for the Team, it  _ hurt _ . “Fine. If you wanna be the Boss, be the fucking Boss!” He ripped the gold-tone chain from around his neck, throwing it at her.

 

“Guzma…”

 

Guzma never looked back as he threw open the front door, stomping outside and slamming it behind him. As he descended the front steps, a few drops began to fall from the sky.  _ Awesome. Just awesome.  _

 

Outside, staring down the road that looked so familiar, and so foreign at the same time, the truth of Guzma’s situation finally started to hit him. Once again, someone he thought would always support him was pushing him away. It wasn’t just Plumeria, either. It was Lusamine, too, the first person who had ever claimed to have any faith in him whatsoever. Because of Plumeria’s words, and hell, maybe even because of his own actions, she’d rejected him too. Who could Guzma turn to now, with the truest family he’d ever known turning his back on him. Of course, it was just the nature of things, wasn’t it? Everyone pushed him away eventually. Most emotions, he pushed down deep inside where he didn’t have to deal with them, but they threatened to bubble up to the surface now, a deep ache forming in his chest. Every person wanted to be loved, to be accepted, but Guzma would have thought by now that he’d get used to it; the feeling of being unwanted.

 

He started down the side of the road, not sure of where he was going but understanding that he couldn’t just stand outside of Shady House forever. If nothing else, he might could go back to his mother’s house, but Guzma didn’t necessarily  _ want  _ to do that. If she’d missed having him around, wouldn’t she have reached out by now? If only there was a place where he was always welcome, always offered a hot meal and a place to sleep. Losing his position with Team Skull left him with nothing. If only he were a young trainer again; he’d have plenty of options then, even Koa’s resource center.

 

_ Koa’s resource center…  _

 

Maybe… Maybe Guzma wasn’t out of options after all. It wouldn’t look good to Plumeria or Lusamine, and he certainly didn’t want to inconvenience Koa by imposing in such a way, but it might be his only option besides being...outdoors. The rain began to pick up, and so did Guzma’s pace. Koa might push him away too, especially since according to her, they weren’t friends, but he’d never know if he didn’t at least try.


End file.
